


The Auction Protocol

by ninjakins



Category: Voltage Inc., kbtbb, otomes - Fandom, voltage - Fandom, スイートルームで悪戯なキス | Kissed By the Baddest Bidder, 怪盗Ｘ恋の予告状 | Kaitou X Koi no Yokokujou | Love Letter from Thief X
Genre: AU, Abandonment Issues, Alternate Prologue, Auctions, Blackmail, Conspiracy, Cults, Danger, Death, F/M, Family, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Girl Power, Hackers, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Intrigue, OC, Physical Torture, Protection, Sexual Content, Slow Burn, Violence, Visual Novel, hacker protecting her bae, otomes, proactive mc, programming jokes, voltage inc. - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-14
Updated: 2017-01-03
Packaged: 2018-04-20 20:26:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 23
Words: 66,826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4801121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninjakins/pseuds/ninjakins
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The on-going hijinks of the auction sponsors and their pet blackmailing hacker.</p><p>When you're a college-age hacker on the run, sometimes you make bad decisions. Like turning to a bunch of criminals for protection. A programming whiz named Cat makes the Auction sponsors an interesting business proposition [i.e.,: blackmail]: to put her skills as a hacker up for auction in exchange for a month of protection from those who are after her. Course, that means she has to get their attention in the first place by hacking Tres Spades.</p><p>(Note: only minor cameos from the LLFTX crew.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Cheshire Cat

**Author's Note:**

> As fun as Kissed by the Baddest Bidder is, the prologue always seemed weak to me. It always bothered me how the MC gets duped into the auctions in the first place, and just passively/naively goes along with it. This is my attempt at a storyline where the MC (a college-age hacker nerd) ends up at Auction through her own proactive initiative...and hopefully gives her a little more spunky personality in the process.
> 
> (This chapter features a special guest appearance from Love Letter from Thief X. Yay Takkun!)

_\---start chat---_  
_takkun:_ this data dump you sent me...  
_catatonic:_ I thought I said not to decrypt it.  
_takkun:_ you know better, idiot  
_catatonic:_ I really do.  
_catatonic:_ Still willing to hold onto it for me?  
_takkun:_ ...yeah ok  
_takkun:_ this is trouble though. you really are a pain  
_catatonic:_ I know. Tell me about it. Just hold onto it. If I don't get back to you by tomorrow...well, you know what to do.  
_takkun:_ you sure you're ok? If you're in trouble we could help  
_catatonic:_ This is a little more trouble than hiding out for a few days at LRN is going to solve  
_catatonic:_ ...but thanks, Takkun. I know you guys would help if I asked. If you don't hear back from me in 12 hours, I'll be glad to have you come steal my butt out of trouble.  
_takkun:_ jeez, sounds like you're not putting a lot of confidence in this 'help' you say you have  
_catatonic:_ You...don't know half of it. But considering the guys I've pissed off, they're the best option.  
_catatonic:_ Assuming I can convince them to not kill me first.  
_takkun:_ ...idiot  
_catatonic:_ Don't go getting sentimental on me, pork noodles. Don't worry. I have a plan.  
_takkun:_ Whatever. I'll hold onto your toys for you. Come by LRN when this blows over. If you're not dead.  
_takkun:_ don't get dead, cat  
_catatonic:_ Same to you, Takkun. Time to hit the button. Say hi to the guys for me.  
\----end chat----

Cat reluctantly closed out the window and went through the route process of wiping the history. She rumpled her chin-length hair tiredly and stared at the screen.

The terminal cursor blinked like an angry star. She'd been staring at the screen for five minutes, but her tea was going cold and there was no more putting it off.

She glanced over her assembled scripts. They would be flawless, just as they were when she checked them twenty minutes ago. She'd confirmed the data dump was safe with Takuto and she knew he wouldn't let her down. With the people who were looking for her, she'd already been at this sidewalk cafe too long.

Time to ruin her life, then. Or save it. One of the two. She didn't have much of a life expectancy if she did nothing.

Cat hit enter, and a flood of terminal text began to swim past her screen. She flopped back in the booth and sighed.

Show time.

\----

The Hotel Tres Spades was a well-oiled machine, and Eisuke liked it that way. So when he walked into the lobby, he initially dismissed the racket as the usual excitement, the shark-like swarming of press, that usually accompanied the days leading up to the I.V.C. But when he looked up from his phone to flash a for-the-press smile, Eisuke paused.

It was not the press, mostly because the press was loaded down with luggage, along with a large, distinctly unhappy crowd or other celebrity guests milling around the lobby. Waiting, perturbed, delayed, rather than socializing. To the hotel's credit, each guest had a very expensive complimentary cocktail in hand, but each guest also had a daggered look for the front desk.

Something was very wrong. Tres Spades staff had mobilized, and a dozen or more managers in suits buzzed behind the counter, answering questions and soothing irate celebrities. Eisuke took a step towards the desk, ready to begin firing incompetents on the spot until the problem was resolved. But then he saw the screens.

And Eisuke stopped short.

A bank of screens were set discretely into the wall above the check-in desk. They normally displayed helpful information in subtle, subdued tones and text. Announcements. Peaceful beach scenes. V.I.P. welcomes, that kind of dreck.

Today, there was a single image, not only on those screens but reflected on every visible monitor behind the front desk. It was obvious from the useless flailings of the staff that they had lost control of the computers. The glitch was an image, a black and white outline of a cat head. A cat sporting a wide, dazzling grin.

A cheshire cat. An attendee of the mad tea party.

Eisuke changed direction and strode for the V.I.P. elevator. He hit the button for the penthouse with enough aggravated force to make it stick, already queueing up calls on his phone.

Someone was not going to just lose their job. Someone was going to suffer for this.

\----

By the time he reached the penthouse, he'd had his fill of stammered apologies. The problem was bigger than he thought. It wasn't just the Tres Spades, every hotel he owned reported the same interruption. Systems down, guest services disrupted, and every display over-ridden with the same. damned. cheshire cat.

The Ichinomiya Group had been hacked, and his IT director was proving less than useless. The man stammered assurances and hourly reports, but Eisuke was already mentally drafting the vacancy on his board. He had no time for incompetence, especially when it cost him money.

The damned cat was on the Penthouse's big screen as well. Eisuke turned away from it angrily and was half way to the stairs when he realized the lounge was full. Baba and Ota shared the couch, muttering some kind of gossip while Kishi snored neary-by. Soryu leaned against the wall and gave him a short nod. They all seemed to be waiting.

"So? What's so urgent? I thought we weren't supposed to meet until tonight." Soryu skipped greetings as usual.

Eisuke narrowed his eyes. "We weren't. Why are you all here?"

"Uh." Baba fished out his phone and wagged it at him. "You summoned us. See, email: 'Penthouse, now. Auction business.'"

"Does this have something to do with your new logo? I could have done better." Ota nodded to the television screen.

"Don't start." Eisuke snapped the phone out of Baba's hand. "Give me that. I didn't email any of you."

"Came from your private address." Baba pointed. Eisuke glowered, as if that would make what he saw on the phone's screen make sense.

Then the screen went blank. Eisuke tapped Baba's phone a couple times before tossing it back at him. "Carry a phone that's not crap."

"Hey. Did yours just lock up, too?" Ota had been entertaining himself with his phone, but looked up now. "Soryu?"

"Some of us actually have work to do..." Soryu's mutter fell off as he flipped open his own phone. The furrow that appeared on the mobster's brow said he was not seeing what he wanted to see.

"I don't have time today to..." Eisuke stopped when he looked down at his own phone. He'd been staring at the IT director's first report a moment before, but now all that displayed was an irritatingly familiar logo of a cat. Eisuke thumbed at the screen, but a new line of text popped up: "Knock. Knock."

"What the..."

"Look at that."

Eisuke looked up to see the logo on the Penthouse's large screen had changed. In it's place was a screen of fast-scrolling text, screenshots, images.

"That's my manager's email," Ota said.

"I recognize those blueprints," Baba added.

"Ice Dragon financials," Soryu muttered darkly as a series of bank statements few by.

"And that's police records." Kishi said, as if he hadn't been napping a moment ago.

Eisuke said nothing, but everyone recognized the Tres Spades logo as spreadsheets, invoices, and other sensitive business data began to fill the screen.

Baba cleared his throat and caught Eisuke's attention. He nodded and Eisuke looked up. The light of the webcam mounted above the screen had turned from red to green.

"Identify yourself." Eisuke said.

The screen changed, morphing from a data stream and back to the cheshire cat. It was animated this time, tail slowly swishing as it's eyes flicked around, as if it could really see them.

The voice that came through the screen was robotic, heavily altered and full of static. "You need to hire better security, Mister Ichinomiya. And Mister Baba needs to work on his Candy Crush score."

Baba snorted behind him, but Eisuke didn't find himself amused. "Whoever you are, you've made a very big mistake."

"Very, very big," Soryu said darkly. "No one blackmails the Ice Dragons."

"Blackmail? No. Consider this a simple business proposition. I have an item for your auctions, and I think it's a deal that would be profitable for everyone."

"If you know about the auctions, you should have made an appointment with a sponsor." Ota spoke up.

The cat made a robotic chuckle. "I don't think I'm the kind that would have made it into your appointment books. I needed to get your attention."

"You certainly have that." Baba said.

The cheshire cat seemed unperturbed. "I have a business proposition I wish to discuss with you, after which, I am more than happy to return your lost data to you. I promise you it is profitable to your interests."

' _Profitable to your interests_ ' is usually what a business partner said right before they tried to screw you, Eisuke thought wearily. But the animated cat plunged on before he could respond.

"I'm forwarding an address to your phones. Please meet me there in an hour to discuss the auctions. As an act of good faith, Mister Ichinomiya, if you look now, you'll find your hotel's service systems restored after this demonstration. I apologize for any inconvenience it's caused you."

At that same moment, Eisuke's phone beeped, displaying a message from IT Director. The network was still locked up, but the hotel management system had been restored. And, of course, the IT department still didn't have a clue what was going on. When he looked up, the chesire cat was gone from the screen and the usual hotel logo had returned.

"Soryu." Eisuke said and the mobster was already moving. He was forced to use the penthouse phone as his cell was still locked up, but Eisuke was certain Soryu could rally an Ice Dragon detail on the address well before they arrived. Perhaps even catch their thief for them.

"Well. He's awfully polite for a hacker." Baba commented.

"Manners won't save him." Eisuke muttered and grabbed his coat. "I assume you all are coming?"

"Things have been too dull around here anyway." Ota clapped Kishi on the shoulder and the detective let out a groan.

"Speak for yourself."

"Let's go catch us a nerd." Baba agreed as they headed to the elevator.

 


	2. The dormouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bidders confront their hacker and a deal gets made. Nothing goes to plan, Cat gets outed by trash, and dumpsters are smelly and full of betrayal.

Soryu's men were waiting for them when they arrived at the address, at what turned out to be an alley around the corner from a busy train station. From the serious expressions the Ice Dragons wore, they hadn't found any evidence of their cheshire cat hacker.

While Soryu muttered orders at his men, Baba nudged Eisuke. "I'll take a look around."

Eisuke nodded. "Do that. Seems this bastard's sneaky."

"No match for me." Baba set off with a wink.

Baba hummed a low tune under his breath as he charted a wide loop around the surrounding buildings. A convenience store, a diner, the train station just around the corner. A decent spot if you wanted to avoid crowds but still have the chance to disappear quickly. Baba would have chosen somewhere with better vertical options, but not bad for a computer nerd.

If the nerd even showed up. Maybe their shadowy hacker had gotten scared, came to his senses. All these guys were pasty, shy computer geeks, right? Neckbeards and nerds? Either way, Soryu would be making sure he regretted ever leaving whatever basement he dwelled in, Baba was certain of that.

He almost felt sorry for the dude. Picking Tres Spades--let alone the auction--for a target was a horrifically bad choice. Eisuke and Soryu were in the worst mood, and Ota and Kishi were none too pleased with the idea of someone invading their privacy.

Baba found himself only mildly inconvenienced. He was used to his identity being in constant risk of being revealed. To the cops, to the press. But he didn't get the feeling that was the hacker's goal.

Baba entertained himself checking for traps, which turned surprisingly productive. Five tiny, cheap webcams were tucked under railings, on rooftops, all strategically pointed at the alley and the entrance. He made a point to wave and give a cheesey grin into each lens before crushing it under his shoe.

Cheap, amateur gear, but still. Their cheshire cat had probably been set up for hours, watching Soryu's men run around like toy soldiers.

\----

Cat watched her eyes blink out one by one. Each time, she got a clear flash of a pearly smile and an arrogantly handsome face before the feed blacked out. That would be the one they called Baba, a thief, from what Cat could make out from their emails. He would be a problem. She had two cams left, but otherwise she was a sitting duck.

A sitting duck in a dumpster.

_Shit._

Poke around anyone's computer long enough, and you learn a few things about hiding things. You learn where people often try to hide things (buried in folders so glaring as to be conspicuous, or poorly, or not at all; a folder labeled 'porn' rarely ever actually was). You also learned where to hide things you wanted missed.

Cat had learned a lot of things as a delinquent. Which was why her butt was falling asleep against the cold, mildly slimey wall of a trash dumpster.

It was at the end of the alley, in sight of the gathered men, and despite the discomfort it had worked out well. Shortly after she cut the feed, the mobster's goons had arrived and crawled all over the place, checking every nook and cranny except for the one sitting smack dab in plain view. All she'd had to do was hang a rag dipped in cat piss over the edge of the lid and even the scary men in suits gave the dumpster a wide berth.

If Cat could smell herself right now she'd probably have steered clear, too.

Personally, she'd prefered a better vantage point. Or a nice wifi cafe half a city away. But besides the fact that being anywhere public was bad news for her, there was the technical issue. Flipping the switch back on the Ichinomiya group's cellphones meant she had to be in range of the Bluetooth, which meant getting close.

So dumpster diving it was.

Even without her cams, she had the script all queued up. She figured she'd explain the deal, get them to agree and broker a deal before revealing herself. Money, the mob, theives, rumors of human trafficking... She had done enough research on these guys to know she was walking a dangerous line.

But then, dangerous was really why she needed them in the first place.

As long as she stayed quiet and undetected in here, this could all still go according to plan.

Cat hunched over her laptop again. She took a last swig of her can of coffee, carefully set it at her feet, and squinted at the screen again. Her remaining cam at the alley entrance showed Ichinomiya and his friends weren't moving.

She started the script.  
   
\----

Baba returned to the alley just in time to see the tablet spring to life, lying abandoned near a trashcan. Eisuke walked over with a sniff. "Another damn screen."

"Someone thinks they can play with us," Soryu said.

"Someone thinks wrong."

"A shy blackmailer?" Ota suggested, but then the tablet began to speak.

"Thank you for coming. I would like to discuss--"

Eisuke let the tablet fall carelessly from his hands and the audio was distorted as the screen shattered on the ground. The sound shotgunned through the alleyway. Eisuke dusted his hands and raised his voice.

"Now you're wasting my time. I suggest showing yourself before we get angry."

And then things got interesting.

\---  
   
The shattering crack echoed even in the dumpster and Cat jumped. Beneath her, the trashed cardboard shifted and creaked. Which made the drink can at her feet wobble. Cat watched in horrified slow motion as the can toppled and rolled down the cardboard towards the metal wall of the dumpster.

Where it came to stop with a heart-stopping clang.

_Oh god. Not good._

Cat forgot to breathe. She flicked her eyes back to the laptop. She only caught a blur of movement on the camera before the dumpster lid shrieked open above her.

Cat jerked her head up and found her wide eyes an inch from the barrel of a very, very large gun. The mobster's eyes widened ever so slightly as he took her in, but Cat had no time to react. The gun disappeared. In the next moment, a large hand clamped down on her arm and she found herself hauled painfully into the air.

\-----

Their neckbeard hacker was a _girl._

Their neckbeard hacker was a _cute_ girl.

This was going to be so much more fun than even Baba had hoped for.

He couldn't help the grin that grew on his face as Soryu fished the girl with a laptop out of the dumpster. She wore plain, dark jeans and a hoodie, but underneath that was a small frame with the kind of sweet curves that, frankly, was a waste under such boring clothes. College age, maybe. Short, tousled hair and wide, dark eyes that were trying very hard to look fierce instead of frightened.

The boys sauntered forward as the girl twisted in Soryu's grasp. The mobster held her easily was one arm twisted behind her back, angled in just a way that she had to stand on her toes. Eisuke crossed his arms and Baba didn't even need to see his face to know the sadistic smile that was growing there.

"Here I thought we were hunting a cat, not a dumpster rat."

"She smells like one." Soryu deadpanned.

"Be nice, Eisuke, Soryu." Ota tutted. "Look at those big eyes. Too cute to be a rat."

"More of a cute little mouse. Our own dormouse," Baba flashed the girl a smile. "Hey there, princess. Know anything about a cheshire cat?"

"She was on this. She's got to be our hacker." Soryu held up a thin laptop before carelessly tossing it on the ground.

The girl's eyes followed the computer and flinched visibly at the impact. "Please be careful with that..."

"A broken computer is about to be the least of your problems." Soryu had his gun out, but seemed reluctant to point it at the girl. Baba was glad to see that even the mobster had been thrown for a loop with this development.

Eisuke, however, seemed to have no such qualms. He pinched the girl's chin in one hand and brought her face up. "You've made a very bad mistake. I don't like being spied on."

The girl shuddered, but narrowed her eyes to glare up at Eisuke. "I'm here to talk about the auctions."

\-----

The way all five men froze, still but with calculating, gleaming gazes, made Cat feel very much like a mouse in a trap. This wasn't the plan. This _so_ was not the plan. Her wrist ached and her legs trembled and she hadn't slept for three days straight. Something quivered in her chest, bravery turning to jelly.

She didn't like that feeling, so she did what she did whenever anything made her uneasy.

She got grumpy.

She cleared her throat and tried to find a position to stand that didn't involve her wrist being crushed by the mobster behind her. "I did say I had business for the auction earlier..."

Mr. Ichinomiya chucked his hand away from her chin. "Who are you to know anything about an auction?"

Surprise managed to overcome her anxiety for the moment, and snark seeped in. Cat blinked. "Really? You hold a ginormous event like the I.V.C. and you guys don't think the conspiracy nuts aren't going to notice who attends? There's whole forums for that kind of rumors. There's guys online that follow mobster sightings like celebrities. Girls, too."

"Tch." The man with a gun snorted behind her, but Ichinomiya made an impatient motion for Cat to continue.

"There were lots of rumors about secret groups and meetings. So...uh, the hotel was obvious to start with. A few pen tests--"

"Pen tests?"

"Penetration tests. On the Tres Spades network. It's easy to get in if you just scan...nevermind." When the hotel owner's gaze darkened, Cat skipped the finer details of how she'd broken a dozen federal laws. "Anyway, I got in. That lead me to...well, I did my research. On...you. Mr. Ichinomiya. Mr. Oh. Kisaki. Baba. Kishi."

"Wait. Why'd Soryu and Eisuke get misters and not us?" Mr. Kisaki complained.

The one named Baba winked. "A pretty lady can call me whatever she wants."

"Fine. You know us. Now who are you?" Ichinomiya asked.

Cat weighed her options. "...uh. You can call me Cat."

"Mouse," someone muttered.

She could tell that answer didn't satisfy Ichinomiya. Cat gathered her nerve and prepared to say what she'd been working on for weeks. The fist of her free hand clenched in front of her stomach. "Before you decide what to do with me, I have an item for auction that I think you'll be interested in."

"And what would that be?"

"Well." Cat took a deep breath. "Me."

\---

That silenced all of the men. Baba felt a sudden stab of pity. Damn. One of those girls.  All auctions required careful consent, but that didn't mean a lot after the auction, after a girl disappeared into a different world. Eisuke always made sure things worked out, but it made Baba uneasy. Cute or not, teasing her suddenly seemed less fun.

Finally Eisuke spoke, eyes severe. "You _want_ to sell yourself? The auctions aren't for bored, spoiled college girls."

"Not me, my skills. As a...uh, technology consultant."

"A hacker," Soryu said.

"There's already plenty of those for hire," Baba pointed out.

"Not many as good as me, though. You already got a demonstration of what I can do, or what I can stop others from doing." The girl named Cat plowed forward as if she hadn't heard the men's comments. She had spirit, Baba had to give her that. "There's precedent, a doctor. I know you do this kind of thing. So I will put up my skills for one month, and I'll split the profits with you. Easy. You... want to make money, don't you?"

Eisuke's eyes took a calculating look. "Even supposing we did, you don't seem like the type. These auctions are part of an underground market. A buyer could ask you to do something unpleasant."

Cat flinched. "As long as it involves a keyboard and an IP, I...will live with that."

"Why?" Baba asked.

She hesitated. "...well, there's two small stipulations."

"I knew it," Soryu muttered.

The girl raised her chin. "One, my skills are the only thing for sale. Nothing else. No matter who buys me at auction, I want you to guarantee the terms of the deal. Two....you'll also guarantee my safety for the month. I don't care how. Long as I'm still alive, I'll destroy all the data I have on you at the end of the month."

Mamoru snorted a puff from his cigarette. "What would a kid like you need protection from?"

"Someone's obviously after her. The woman reeks of desperation...among other things." Soryu said with a faint wrinkle of his nose. "What, did you steal from someone important? Blackmail the wrong man?"

"No! I don't do any of that stuff. Strictly white hat....well, up until now." A troubled look flashed over Cat's face. "It doesn't matter who. I can promise you it's no one you do business with."

"...because you snooped into all our private business. Naughty mouse." Ota said.

"Well...yes. Sorry about that."

"Why a month?" Baba was suddenly curious.

The girl's face twitched and she looked down for the first time since they found her. She suddenly looked tired. "I need...time. To make plans. Then, you'll never hear from me again. No one will, I swear."

Soryu shook his head. "This is ridiculous. Let's just find what she stole and let Kishi deal with her."

The girl seemed to have anticipated that. Her cheeks went pale but she kept her eyes fixed ahead. "You don't really want to do that."

"You've threatened our business. I really think we do," Eisuke said.

Cat whispered, "Ever hear of a dead man's switch?"

Baba had. His smile faded, but he was forced to reconsider. "This is going to be interesting."

She flicked her eyes briefly to him, cheeks coloring before facing Eisuke. "Your data is safe right now, very safe. I can promise you that. Encrypted and safe from anyone finding it on a very secure server. But if that server doesn't receive a very specific code from a very specific account every 24 hours, it triggers a script."

"And...?"

The girl swallowed hard. "Well. Then your data becomes... not safe."

"It goes public," Baba guessed.

"I'm so glad the kid said this wasn't a blackmail attempt," Mamoru said dryly.

"It's not!" The girl tried to straighten, but it was difficult with the way Soryu's grip had tightened. She leveled her gaze at Eisuke. "It's a just a business deal. Right? I get a month, you get something new at auction and a tidy profit."

The mouse was clever and cute. Crazy, but cute. Baba found his smile growing and slanted his eyes at Eisuke. His face was blank but Baba could see the calculations going on behind sharp eyes.

In front of them, Baba could tell the girl was struggling not to twitch. Her free hand gave a tiny tremble until she clenched it.

She wasn't as hard as she looked, Baba thought, even being here. Something was scaring her more than they did.

"You're asking for a month of protection. That takes valuable resources. Half the sale isn't enough." Eisuke said finally, a hard smile forming. His voice became cool and disinterested, which Baba knew meant he had a deal in his sights. "Sweeten the offer. Now. Convince us not to just dispose of you."

Their little mouse seemed uncertain. Cat glanced around, searching each of their faces before a small frown appeared. She shrugged. "Two million. That's all I need to disappear after this. You can keep the rest of the sale."

Eisuke raised a brow. "You really think you'll bring that much?"

"I can guarantee at least twice that."

"I'd bid. Never had a mouse for a pet before," Ota said, causing the girl's eyes to widen.

"The pretty lady's gone to a lot of effort. She has my vote," Baba said.

Mamoru shrugged. "Arresting her would be a hassle."

"Hmm." Eisuke appeared to consider, though Baba suspected it was only to force the girl to squirm some more. "One million. You return my operations to normal. _And_ you belong to us until the auction in two days."

Cat's lips thinned. She appeared to run some numbers in her head before dropping her chin. "Deal."

\----

And so the deal was done.

Her wrist was released, but Cat nearly didn't feel it. All the adrenaline from the past few days suddenly disappated, letting a fog of exhaustion set in. She stood there, barely blinking as Ichinomiya and the Ice Dragons leader conferred and began ordering a car back to the hotel. Orders were made, but everything came to Cat through a sudden daze.

She was doing this. There was no going back. No school, her family, her _life_ \--

"Busy day, Princess?" A light touch took her hand and Cat looked up.

It was the thief. Cat met his gaze with a blink. His eyes were the color of raw honey, warm and soft. Not suspicious, as if she hadn't just been blackmailing him and his friends a minute before. He patted her hand and Cat belatedly realized she'd been trembling.

"Something like that." Cat said, fog clearing from her mind as she remembered. She straightened and frowned at him. "You broke my cameras."

The thief gave a dazzling smile. "That was an entertaining stroll."

_Ugh. Gallingly confident, that one._ Cat pursed her lips. "You missed two, Mr. Baba."

"I did? I don't usually miss much. You can call me just Baba, by the way. Or Mitsu. Or handsome." The thief tilted his head, eyeing her with a grin. He kept her hand but was gentle as he clasped it in the hook of his arm. He guided her as the group began to disperse into black cars parked at the end of the alley. "We'll have to have a rematch."

"Getting sloppy in your old age, Baba?" Mr. Kisaki came up on her other side, passing a hand through his hair. The artist still looked mildly annoyed at her, but satisfied with the turn of events. "Or are you over here, making sure she didn't delete all your girlfriend's contacts?"

"Hey now. Just because I'm there for a lady in need--"

"I did about run out of disk space when I got to your address book." Cat kept her face straight, but Kisaki burst out laughing.

"Sharp. This will be fun. Maybe she actually will be more kitty than mouse." The artist said, patting her shoulder before wrinkling his nose. "Kitty needs a bath, though."

She did smell of the dumpster. Cat flushed, mortified, but Kisaki ducked into the car before she could respond.

Baba just winked as he motioned her into the car. "You can use my shower at the Penthouse. I'm betting you clean up nice."

Cat ignored that. Her mind was already beginning to race as they slid in and the car turned towards Tres Spades.

_Two days, thirty days, a million dollars. That was it. She couldn't trust any of the men around her, but she could trust her assets. And herself. But would that be enough to stop the disaster she'd stumbled into?_  
   
 


	3. Safe, Not Comfortable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first night at Tres Spades. Wherein Baba talks to doors and contemplates puzzles.

"Let me through, Baba."

"C'mon, Boss. She's already asleep. Let's save it for tomorrow." Baba leaned against the door to his suite on the penthouse level, seemingly oblivious to Eisuke's scowl. "You saw her in the alley. She got all the bluster out of the way and could barely stay upright."

"Which means I may be able to get some straight answers out of her. That girl stole from us. All of us. If we're putting her up I want to know just how much--"

"You have her laptop and phone, yah?"

Eisuke stopped and shrugged. "I got some of my people out of bed to take a look at them. We should know what's on them by morning."

"Which means that'll be the perfect time to press her with what we found." Baba rubbed his chin. "This isn't one of your employees that will agree if you get scary enough. She's a girl but she's also a thief...of a weird kind. Not my style. Still. Thieves hate being trapped. Let her stew over night and we'll get more answers in the morning."

Eisuke's lips thinned as he considered. "Fine. You understand her so well, you get to babysit her until the auction."

Baba started. "Hey now, I've got a date tomorrow night and--"

"And we all know you'll have just the sweet words to get out of it. This is your mess now. Keep her out of trouble and try to find out what exactly we're putting up on that stage," Eisuke said and strode off.

\---

Baba waited until he heard Eisuke's suite door close above. Then he heaved a heavy sigh and retreated back into his apartment. Cynthia was going to kill him for canceling on her, but Baba suspected she had a new guy in her sights anyway. He made a mental note to bring her tulips next time. Besides, babysitting a cute college girl shouldn't be too hard, right? 

Course, this pretty girl already came with complications. He approached the closed door to the bathroom. He leaned against the wall next to it and crossed his arms.

"You know, Princess, you likely cost Eisuke’s hotels a couple hundred thousand in operations today. Might consider pacing yourself. Try only infuriating the powerful billionaire once a day."

Silence. 

Baba wiggled the door latch, but as he expected, it was locked. "You really intend to sleep in there, pretty lady? My bathroom may be nice but I can promise you my bed is softer. Much better company."

A muffled voice came through. "I'll pass."

"Ah! The angel speaks. Want to come out now?"

"Nope. I'm set in here. Have a nice night." So much for intimidating her with a locked room, Baba thought with a wry smile. 

The lock on the door really was nothing. No matter how fancy the hotel, the locks were always a walk in the park. Baba fished a lockpick out of his pocket and tapped it against his lips. He could open the door in half a minute. Still. Something made him hesitate.

"Now you're just hurting my gentlemanly honor," Baba said lightly. "Surely my emails didn't make me out to be that bad."

"...No. That's not.." He heard some movement on the other side of the door and a soft, feminine sigh. "That's not it. I just...prefer sleeping with a locked door tonight.”

Baba settled on the floor, leaning his back against the door. He thought he could sense her doing the same on the other side. A warm, clean scent. Sharp, enigmatic twist of tension just out of sight. 

He leaned his head back. "Did you miss all those nice security guards on the way up that restricted access elevator, cutie? We wouldn't be here if it wasn't secure."

He heard her shift. "So one more door makes it even more secure. Allow a _cutie_ her paranoia."

Not for the first time, Baba wondered what had sent this strange woman into their business. "Still. The bathroom's not very comfortable."

"I'm not looking to be made comfortable, Baba." 

The answer came through the door quiet and simple, and something about it caught Baba by surprise. 

The guys liked to call Baba a womanizer, but he really was just an ardent admirer of happiness. He had the pleasure of knowing many amazing women--and all women were awe-inspiring, to Baba. He prided himself on reading and anticipating what women wanted, what would make them smile. The smiles, the light, that was always the best part. And what usually brought them was nice things, compliments, flowers, making a beautiful woman feel beautiful and comforted. Mastering those things was Baba's hobby.

He hadn't seen their Cat smile yet, and she had no interest in being complimented or comforted. Baba decided it was a puzzle he would solve. He never could resist a puzzle. 

Baba thought for a few moments then came to a decision. He quietly slipped the lockpick back into his pocket.

"And what if I need to use the facilities tonight, hmm?" He teased.

"It's a hotel. You're a thief. _Go steal one_."

Baba chuckled and stood up. "Alright, alright. I'll be seeing you in the morning. Sweet dreams, pretty lady."

Baba stayed up another hour and a half, watching the bustling Tokyo skyline quiet and the night stretch out in glittering lights outside. He gathered a couple spare blankets under one arm and approached the bathroom door. He listened. Silence.

Carefully, Baba flicked the lockpick into the lock. The door released with a quiet click and he nudged it open a finger-width to peek inside.

Light from the city skyline pooled across the floor and painted Cat's sleeping form in swathes of silver and violet. The bathroom was luxuriously appointed, like everything at Tres Spades. Cat had fell asleep on the bathroom's dressing area divan, wrapped in a Tres Spades bathrobe. Through her legs were curled tight underneath her, she'd flung her arms over her head in her sleep. 

Baba watched a moment, but she made no sign of waking. _Exhausted. I would be too after pulling off a stunt like today._ He silently stepped into the room and crouched next to the divan. 

She almost did look cat-like, now. Stretched out, relaxed, lost in whatever dreams that strange mind dreamed. Her face was small, softer when not strung tight with tension. Still had that stubborn jut in the chin, though. It made Baba smile. One small hand drifted over her cheek, half closed as if around some invisible, precious thing.

He allowed himself a moment to appreciate the sight then carefully unfolded a blanket and let to settle around her. He took care to make sure it tucked around her bare legs. 

He could have just as easily scooped her up and gotten her to bed without her waking, really. But even in their short acquaintance, Baba could imagine how that would go over when she woke up.

_She didn't want to feel comfortable. She wanted to feel safe._

The thought arrested Baba and he considered Cat again. Her hair was still wet, twisted in short, unruly waves around her relaxed face. Beautiful, would have been breath-taking with a smile. But she still didn't smile; not even in her sleep. 

She had a poor sense of safety, showing up here. But, still. 

To feel safe. Baba was familiar with that desire. He stood before old memories could come to surface.

Instead, he turned and began scooping up the ripe jeans and hoodie and leaving behind the borrowed clothes the hotel manager had produced. They would have to find her something better tomorrow. Tres Spades was a glitzy place; even clean, there was no way Eisuke would tolerate her walking around his hotel in those.

With another glance towards the sleeping woman, Baba slipped out, making sure to lock the bathroom door behind him again.

\---

Light fluttered at her eyelids and saved Cat from a formless dream. Her eyes opened, landed on marble and frosted glass, and she jerked upright. Remembered where she was. _Oh, shit._

A velour blanket slid into her lap. Cat looked down and ran a finger over the plush fuzz, satin trim. From there, her eyes slid to the folded, unfamiliar garments on the vanity counter. _So much for locked doors and privacy, assholes._ Cat felt a cranky flush before scolding herself. Well, she was dealing with thieves.

And it's not like she didn't do her snooping first.

She kicked back the blanket, stretched. A muscle in her shoulder tugged and Cat winced. 

Barricading herself in the bathroom was not her smartest moment, at all. Surrounded by criminals, she needed to be appear capable, cool, tough. But three days of sleep and being hunted had fried her brain and after they confiscated her gear last night and she couldn't even distract herself with pointless internet as was her norm...

Damn, now all she wanted to do was check tumblr.

The murderous way the auction sponsors looked at her yesterday, she'd be lucky if she got back on-line in this century. But they'd have to at least let her reset the deadman's switch today. There was a lot Cat could do with that. At least she had a solid night's sleep. 

Positive thought in mind, Cat moved towards the counter to get dressed.

No hoodie and jeans. Not even a t-shirt. She held up the clothes and stopped when she saw the dull, gray-blue cotton. White piping. Tres Spades logo.

A maid uniform. Because of course they would. _You're just a tool for auction now. Remember that. You need to be useful, but not too used. Keep your guard up._

Cat muttered darkly under her breath as she tugged the dress on. She ran fingers through her short hair and frowned at the mirror before turning to face whatever waited outside the door. 

Breakfast, she hoped. More demands, she expected.

"Ugh, rich people."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mostly just an interlude to highlight Baba's reaction. A little short to get this out and on to writing the day-before chapter and auction hijinks!


	4. Out of Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cat's first morning in the Penthouse, bets with Baba, and yet more failures at endearing herself with the bidders.

 The girl that had brought Ichinomiya Group temporarily to it’s knees drowned a perfectly good cup of coffee with cream. Travesty. Still. Baba watched transfixed, studying the way the corners of Cat’s eyes softened as she breathed in the steam. 

Then she set about demolishing a western breakfast large enough for a football team. 

They were in the penthouse lounge, but he’d had the hotel bring up a dining set and pretty much one of everything off the VIP menu. Baba leaned back in his chair as he watched three toasts and a rasher of bacon disappear in short order. 

“I like a lady with a healthy appetite.” 

“A _lady_ has whatever appetite she wants, thanks.” Cat said around a mouth of eggs. “This is good. I thought a place like this would be over-worked miso soup and smoked fish.”

“I knew you were more of a bacon and eggs kind of girl.” Then Baba laughed at her sudden wariness, suspicious question forming on her lips.

“Relax, Princess. I knew because I _read_ _people_. Not emails, like some.”

Cat dropped her eyes as her cheeks flushed. “Right.”

_God damn that’s cute._

“More coffee?” Baba made sure to leaned across the table in time to catch her hand on the mug. He covered her fingers with her own. The back of her hands were soft, warmed from the mug. Baba enjoyed feeling her pulse flutter as she held the cup still for a refill. 

“Thanks,” Cat pulled the mug back just a touch faster than warranted. “What’s on the agenda for today?”

Baba leaned back, amused. “I cleared my schedule so you’ll have me to yourself all day, Princess. I’ll  be happy to take you out on the town. Or we could stay in, get to know each other the old-fashioned way.”

The mug paused halfway to Cat’s mouth. She stared at him a moment before a short laugh broke across her face. Laughter. Fragile, light and short-lived as a snowflake.

“Oh my god. You never give up, do you?”

“Certainly not when it gets a cute smile like that,” Baba grinned. “Admit it, you’re falling in love with me.”

Cat’s laugh faded to an eye roll. “Two-point-five.”

“Two-point-five?” 

“That cheesy line was a two-point-five on the believable scale,” she mumbled around a mouth full of toast.

“Out of five?”

“Out of ten.”

 _Ouch._ Baba slapped a hand over his heart then leaned forward. “But what you’re saying is it _wasn’t_ zero.”

She made a dismissive sound. “A thief and an optimist.”

“I’ll just have to try better, then. What’s a ten look like?”

Cat raised a salute with her coffee cup. “I’ll let you know when I see it.”

“You do that. Prepare yourself.”

Cat gave a tiny snort. “Right. Manage a ten and I’ll—“

Footfalls on the steps stopped Cat before she could finish that tantalizing statement. A rumpled suit appeared and made a beeline for their table.

“Mornin’,” Detective Kishi grunted around what was likely not his first cigarette for the day.

_Dammit, Mamoru. Coulda gave me two more minutes to make this interesting._

——

“Ugh, coffee. Gimme.” The detective swiped the mug out of Cat’s hands before she realized it. He pinched the mug around the lip and took a swig. Made a face. “Shit, how much cream did you put in here?”

“Perhaps if you made your own…” Cat muttered.

“Nah. This’ll do.” He headed towards the elevator, cup in hand.

“Hey!” Cat stared after him. “That was mine!”

“Quit your whining, kid. Later, Baba.”

Cat shook her head as the elevator door closed. And that one was supposed to be a police officer. She barely had time to glance at Baba’s smiling face and wonder, not for the first time, whether she’d been better taking her chances with the police. Or Takuto’s friends. Or anyone other than…

_Thud._

“Password,” Eisuke appeared behind her and dropped the laptop onto the breakfast table. “Enter it.”

Cat managed a startled smile. “I did tell you that taking my laptop was a waste of time. Did your techs run into trouble?”

The hotelier stepped back, already looking bored. “Open it. I won’t tell you again.”

“Did you trade away your manners on a business deal or…” She saw Eisuke’s smile chill and she hurriedly snapped open the laptop. “Uh, right. An order. Let’s see what your script monkeys did to my baby…”

The log-in screen showed eight failed attempts at her password. Cat tried her best to suppress her smile. “They couldn’t decrypt the drive so they tried brute forcing the password? At least they knew enough that on a typical OS two more attempts and the drive would wipe.”

Eisuke made an imperious motion. “So enter the right one.”

“Fine with me. Only…I didn’t say I ran a typical set-up.” Cat paused and entered a string of characters, hit enter. She waited for the password to take then swung the laptop around for the men to see. 

A Windows clean install prompt filled the screen.

It was a struggle, but Cat managed to mostly keep her face neutral. “Girl like me values her privacy. I set my system to wipe after five attempts.”

Baba let out a low, nervous whistle.

Cat had expected the hotelier to be angry. She hadn’t expected him to smile. That was even more frightening. He reached across the table and leaned in close. “You think you’re very clever.”

Cat swallowed very, very carefully. “I…guess that’s why I’m here, isn’t it?”

“And what exactly do you think I do with clever people who cause me problems?”

“I suppose you start treating this like a business deal and just tell me what you need. I’ll hold up my end of the bargain.” Cat forced her voice level, though her pulse thudded in her throat. 

“Until the auction, there is no business deal. I own you.”

“Is that why I’m dressed as a maid?” Cat forgot her nerves for a moment. “I am not one of your cleaning staff.”

“You’re whatever I say you are.” Eisuke gave a cold smile and withdrew, crossing his arms. “Unless you rather I throw you out to whatever men you have looking for you.”

“Because you’ve done such a good job getting back your data yourself?” Cat tapped the blank laptop between them. “I'll hold up my end. Stop trying to fuck with me.” 

Eisuke’s eyes narrowed. “Trust me, woman. When I decide to fuck with you, you’ll know it.”

Cat frowned at the ridiculous threat. Her eyes drifted to Baba a moment. Smirked. His eyes widened. She turned back to Eisuke with a shrug.

 “1.5.”

Eisuke’s eyes narrowed in confusion. “1.5? What…?” 

“Look at the time!” Baba snatched up her laptop and practically dragged Cat out of the seat. “Better get to that deadman’s switch then take you shopping, eh sweetheart? Back later, Boss!”  

Cat found herself foisted up the stairs faster than necessary. Baba’s breath warmed Cat’s ear as he leaned close.  “For a clever girl you really are an idiot.”

—

It was a small matter for Cat to pull up the partition that included a back-up image of her laptop. She was up and running again within a few minutes—not that the men around her needed to know that—and seeing the chat terminal pop-up felt so familiar, a homesick pang twisted in her chest.

 _takkun_ : that really you?  
_catatonic_ : _’twas brillig; and the slithy toves_  
_takkun_ : _he chortled in his joy_  
  


Cat paused, squeezing her eyes shut as she counted out lines backwards and forwards through the poem before responding.

  
 _catatonic_ : _beware the jabberwock my son_  
 _takkun:_ poetry. this is the stupidest verify code you’ve ever come up with  
 _catatonic:_ lit major, remember?  
 _catatonic:_ and good to see you too  
 _catatonic:_ for future notice, if anyone asks, you’re a very compact script running a deadman’s switch on a server  
 _takkun:_ if anyone shows up to ask, you better already be dead  
 _catatonic:_ more than likely  
 _takkun:_ why didn’t you use a script anyway?  
 _catatonic:_ Because a script wouldn’t be able to tell if it was really me checking in. You would.  
 _takkun:_ stupid  
 _takkun:_ you ok? any problems?  
 _catatonic:_ plenty of problems. But I think I’m ok for now.  
 _catatonic:_ got to run tho. My babysitter thinks we have to go shopping.  
 _takkun:_ shopping?  
 _catatonic:_ don’t ask. Say, you know anything more about that thief that calls himself Lupin?   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure I love this chapter but it sets up some things for the next ones. Onward!


	5. Murder Dresses and Bonus Heart Attacks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shopping interlude. Cat gets a name, talks through more doors, and Baba fine tunes his rating game.

Baba hadn’t been lying when he said he’d take her shopping. The entire retail gallery of Tres Spades echoed, strangely emptied of the rich and the bored. Baba kept one hand lightly pressed into the hollow of her back. Warmth drifted up her spine from where his fingers rested. It seemed a gentlemanly gesture, but Cat was fairly certain it was just so she didn’t have a chance to protest or run. 

Their destination was a shop with windows displaying dresses that seemed entirely composed of jewels and wicked intentions. Cat planted her feet at the threshold.

“I don’t need anything from here.”

“So we’re putting a rare, black market hacker up to auction dressed in a maid’s uniform? Not that you don’t look lovely.” Baba’s voice was teasing but his hand looped around her waist and nudged her in.

“I can wear my old clothes to the auction.”

“Not unless you want to give Eisuke a heart attack.”

“That would just be a bonus.”

Baba stifled a chuckle. He waved over a store clerk and turned towards Cat. “Come on. Try some on. Just pick out one dress, then I’ll buy you all the hoodies and ironic t-shirts your heart desires.”

Cat’s eyes wandered over the glittering racks skeptically. “I am not your dress up doll.”

“Of course not. You’re our sexy, elite hacker. I know you can look the part.” 

“I also don’t usually code in an evening gown…” Cat sulked, even as Baba enlisted the assistant and dresses began to pile into her hands. She glanced at a price tag and wasn’t surprised to see one piece was equal three three months rent. The appearance of the store clerk made it impossible to argue with Baba any further and Cat found herself hustled into a dressing room the size of her old apartment. 

The first dress she tried on was shimmering red satin, thick with tiny gems that weighed down the floor-length hem and gradually thinned to tendrils of glittering light as they snaked their way up. Cat stepped out to the mirror.

Baba looked up and his brows rose enough to disappear. “Yes, definitely.”

“No, definitely.” Cat picked at an offending gem. “I look like I murdered a glitter vampire.”

"Everyone needs a murder dress," Baba smiled. “You look like the brightest star in my sky, princess.”

Cat shook her head. “Two, barely.”

“I’m going down in ratings, now?” Baba called after her as she disappeared into the dressing room. “Wait, was that score for me or the dress?”

Cat suppressed a smile as she shucked off the dress for the next one. “Take a guess.”

The subsequent dresses followed a similar pattern, though Baba honed his comments and managed to reach a high of four at one point. He kept up a patter of chatter as Cat changed. She found the banter had a soothing effect. The knot between her shoulder blades, which had been there since she’d quit considering her own apartment safe, unwound. Just a little. She began to notice little things. The little reassurances slipped between over-the-top flirtations. 

They’d been there an hour when she heard Baba’s tone change through the dressing room partition. “So, college girl, you said?”

“I didn’t say, but yeah.” 

“Ooo, tell me it was one of those elite private schools that still does girls uniforms.”

Cat rolled her eyes. “Nope. Sorry to disappoint you.”

“No, I suppose you’re right. Smart, sensible. You seem like the U of Tokyo type.”

Her mind flashed on the Hongo campus, hot days spent hiding out with friends at Sanshiro pond. The memories left a lump in her throat, but Cat was beginning to be impressed with Baba’s people reading abilities. She forced her tone to be non-commital. “Is that so?”

“Yeah. I’m guessing literature major.”

Now, that was too eerie for comfort. Cat yanked back the curtain wide enough to stick her head out. A catbird smile rested on Baba’s lips as he lounged on the couch, amber eyes twinkling. 

“Baba. What did you do?”

“Me, princess? Nothing.” Baba held up the phone in his hand. “But Mamoru just emailed us your profile from the police database. No police record but turns out your parents registered you as a kid…”

“But how did he…” Cat stopped. Thought for two beats. Groaned. “The coffee cup. Breakfast. He lifted my prints from the coffee cup. Ran them illegally. That sneaky, dirty cop…”

“Says the hacker who broke how many laws blackmailing—”

“Shut up.” Cat yanked her head back into the dressing room.

She heard Baba chuckle. “So. Katsuko Tachibana. Pretty name for a pretty girl.”

“It’s just Cat now.” Cat grumbled as she proceeded to not so much remove the next dress from the hanger but wrestle it into submission.

“Final year at U of Tokyo, excellent grades right up until your family filed a missing person report three weeks ago…” Baba trailed off, seeming to allow a moment for Cat to swallow the worry that blossomed at the mention of her family before he moved on. “World Literature studies? Huh. I expected you to be a computer science major or something.”

“Don’t need the degree if you’re already good at what you do. I already knew I’d find a job after I graduate….well, _was_ going to graduate.”  Cat zipped up the dress and found herself toying with the hem. 

“You sound almost cocky.” Baba noted, curious.

“Only when it comes to computers.” Cat said. _It’s everything else that’s gone to hell._  

She took a deep breath and faced the mirror. “Figured if I’m going to get a degree, it should be something fun that I couldn’t learn off of a forum.”

“Seems like you did well. Scholarship kid. Not big on school groups or activities…”

“Well. My friends weren’t at University.” Cat thought of Takuto.

“And, hey. First of your family to go to college.” Baba continued through the door. “Two younger brothers. Father works as a…”

“Baba?” Cat’s voice was brittle. She struggled to take a tight breath.

“Yeah?”

“I need to ask you a favor.” Cat looked down, realized the dress was crumpled in her hands. She smoothed it down distractedly. “Skip the family part.”

A long silence, then she heard the thief let out a velvety breath. “Anything for you, princess. I just…well, it …looks like a nice family.”

“They were. The best.” Cat murmured to herself. “And I screwed it up.”

She turned her attention to the dress she’d put on. It was a soft, grey-blue chiffon the color of a stormy sea. Gathered at one shoulder, and a hem that floated above the knee. Wispy soft. Cat ran her fingers over it, reminded, perhaps because of the conversation, of her mother’s wardrobe. 

Cat loved getting lost in it, as a kid, looking for the back wall that would lead to Narnia, or some other magical place. Her mother’s couple formal dresses, kept but never worn, saved for special occasions. The way they reached out with chiffon and lace fingers as she pressed through, carding at her hair and brushing her cheeks. Cat liked to hide at the back of the closet, when she was small enough. Hide from her brothers. 

Imagining no one could find her in her private forest of glitzy willows, sequin skies.

 Not so far from what she was doing now. And maybe just as silly.

“Been in there a long time. Did you finally find a winner? Something that stands up to your beauty?” Baba’s voice was light again. _Nothing keeps that thief down._

“3.5.” But Cat stepped out again anyway. 

The thief was still on the couch, but had leaned forward to study his phone. He propped his elbows on his knees. Cat met his eyes through a fringe of soft, toffee brown hair. Even trapped beneath that silly fedora, it always seemed to drift about his face, a gentle life of it’s own.

_Wonder if it’s as soft as it looks._ Cat blinked twice. Schooled that thought away. _Steady, girl._

She saw his eyes travel from toes to top, coming to rest, to his credit, somewhere on her face. It’s why she noticed the light seem to shift in his eyes, from amber to caramel. A slow smile pulled crookedly at one side of his face, without the smug curl this time.

“You’re beautiful.” It was said as a fact.

Cat shrugged. “The dress is okay.”

“I didn’t say anything about the dress.” Baba swept to his feet, made a simple motion to the assistant lingering near by. There was a drawn moment that allowed Cat to consider Baba as the assistant bustled through the dressing area. Everything about him really was caramel and toffee. 

She cleared her throat. “How much teasing do I need to expect from the others when we get back to the Penthouse?”

“Oh, I imagine plenty. You’ve caused some trouble being mysterious, you know.” Baba slipped his hand into hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. “But nothing about family. I’ll talk to them. If there’s anything Eisuke understands it’s that.”

Cat felt a rush of relief and gratitude that she had no idea what to do with. She directed it into looking back to the dressing room. “I’ve got to change and pay…”

“The shop will take care of all that. They’ll send it up along with the others.”

“Others?”

“Other dresses.”

“Baba, no. I’m not going to owe you—“

“It’ll bill to the hotel. Take the opportunity to waste Boss’ money when you can. And see, you just look too cute in that dress. I gotta take you out now. Dinner?”

“Baba, I’m not here to—“ 

They were already out the door. Baba folded her hand into a crooked arm with a practiced flourish. “You can tell me more about your college days, pretty lady. You’re developing a stymying habit of only honestly talking to me through locked doors, you know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Officially adding "slow burn" to the tags here because we are in for a ride with these two.


	6. The Mad Tea Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The auction happens, Cat gets out maneuvered, meets her new sponsors, and plans change. DAMMIT EISUKE.

_takkun_ : you’re back online  
_catatonic:_ surprise  
_takkun:_ idiot  
_takkun:_ you got your protection then?  
_catatonic:_ yeah  …in a way.   
_takkun:_ ????  
_catatonic:_ things didn’t go quite as planned.  
_takkun:_ this I gotta to hear  


\---- 

The day of the auction was a flurry of activity that seemed designed to make Cat feel like a glorified, over-priced vase. Eisuke and Soryu held court in the lounge, muttering orders to a steady stream of subordinates and occasionally venturing out to hold meetings with the rich and powerful. Ota and Mamoru were no where to be found, and even Baba wasn’t around to harass her with cheesey one-liners. 

All this should have made Cat pleased, a moment without noisy men issuing threats or flirtations at her. She even had her laptop back. But rather than working on her plan, she found herself worrying wide erratic circles through Baba’s apartment. Tonight. The auction was tonight. Then she would start working in an entirely different world, just as she felt she was getting a handle on navigating the life of the Tres Spades penthouse. She’d be doing someone else’s dirty work for a month. 

She’d, of course, done her homework. And she had her preferences. She hoped one of the business men won the bid, rather than the many criminal organizations present at these things. Some powerful and corrupt government officials attending the auction, but she hoped to avoid them. Anything but government work. Ugh. The hacktivist part of her recoiled at the idea of helping any official entity wrap it’s digital fingers even tighter around a population.

She stopped at the wide bank of windows and stared out sightlessly, running over her preparations. There was a reason she’d been confident in guaranteeing Ichinomiya a high pay-out. She knew her skills. 

And she knew there’d be some motivated buyers in the audience. Cat had taken steps to ensure that.

She was still staring sightlessly at the darkening Tokyo skyline when the door clicked behind her. She turned and saw a familiar long, lean figure watching her from the doorway. “Show time, princess.”

“Right…” Cat turned. Baba had something in his hands and she raised a brow. “What. Is. That.”

“This is your outfit for the evening.”

“I’m already _wearing_ my clothes for the evening.” Cat said defensively. She’d picked a business-like black shift dress from the shopping trip yesterday, sleek and modern. With slicked back hair and glasses, she’d look edgy but professional. Exactly how a highly skilled hacker should look.

The thing in Baba’s hands was…not. It drastically missed anything below the upper-thigh. That classified as a bandage, not a dress. And the material…

“Is that…?”

“No man can resist a woman in leather.” Baba licked a finger down one curve of the mini-dress with a wink. 

“Good lord. Gross. 1. Less than,” Cat said automatically. Her eyes continued to skeptically pick apart the outfit. “No way. No one is going to take me seriously in that thing. I’ll look like I’m trying to sell something _entirely_ different.”

“I think you’ll look irresistible, pretty lady.” Then he paused, studying her face.  “Boss insisted.”

Ichinomiya had to know this wasn’t appropriate to sell her technical skills at auction. It was lewd and embarrassing and… Things clicked into place and Cat tilted her head back with a groan. “Of _course_ he did. This is punishment for the password thing.”

“You haven’t exactly tried to endear yourself to him,” Baba said then held out the dress again. “I, on the other hand, have fallen madly for you. Wear it for me, princess?”

“Not for you. 3.5.” Cat grudgingly took the hanger anyway. “God. This an exercise in insanity.”

“It _is_ called the Mad Tea Party, Miss Cheshire Cat.” 

—

The auction was both better and worse than she expected. 

She’d tapped into the feeds, so she knew to expect the ridiculous gold bird cage. The unnecessary handcuffs. The bright lights and the strange auctioneer dressed up as a Mad Hatter. She hadn’t expected the panic as the platform lifted and it all began. The feeling of the loss of control. She told herself it was the cold—too much A/C beneath the glaring lights, too little of that damn leather dress—that made her shiver as the auctioneer reeled out a recitation of her previous exploits and skills. 

It made Cat’s self-preservation itch. No one who did what she did laid out things so blatantly as that, let alone to a crowded auditorium of powerful people. But, surprise! Yet another ridiculous excess that Ichinomiya insisted on.

And then the bids started.

——

When she stepped out of the cage and her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the back stage again, Cat was surprised to see two familiar figures waiting for her.

“Baba, Ota?” Cat caught the way Ota ran his eyes over her dress and crossed her arms. “So who was the winning bid?” She had to admit she was curious. The bidding had gone on longer than even she had anticipated.

“The winner’s up in the penthouse. Soryu obviously had to discuss the terms of your agreement, protection and all.” Ota had a smirk that seemed especially devious, even for the artist. But before Cat could squint and ask more questions, Baba offered his arm.

“Come on, princess. I think you’ll like this.” 

——

When the elevator doors opened, Soryu and Eisuke were deep in discussion in the lounge. Cat saw Detective Kishi, as usual, asleep on the back couch, but otherwise the Penthouse appeared empty. 

Cat slowed as she approached. “Was there a problem with the bid?”

“No problem.” Ota seemed unable to contain another giggle under his breath.

“So…where’s the winning bidder?” Cat looked down to arrange a forced, if pleasant, smile on her face. _Whoever it is, let’s just get this over with._

Ota and Baba fell away from her sides and Cat looked up to find all five men looking at her. Baba smiled. Ota chuckled again. Soryu narrowed his eyes. There’s no way…

And when Eisuke crossed his arms with that cold smile, Cat felt a suspicion crystalize. A hiss escaped her lips. 

“…you didn’t!”

Soryu shrugged. “Makes my job easier.”

“The bid went to twenty million!” Cat threw her arms up, only to quickly pull them down as the dress rode up. "Don't be ridiculous."

“Twenty million…payable to those who listed the item.” Soryu said. 

“Which is us.” Ota chimed in.

“Minus the fee paid to the sponsors of the auction,” Baba said. 

“Which is us.” Ota grinned.

“You just…bought me…from yourselves.” Cat repeated slowly.

“There is the matter of your supposed fee if you behave yourself for a month, but divide a million five ways…pocket change.” Eisuke flashed a perfectly pearly, perfectly icy smile. “I’ve spent more on a nice suit, myself. 200 thousand for something others will pay millions for. Not bad for something I pulled out of a trash bin.”

 “And it eliminates the hassle of protection details,” Soryu pointed out before Cat could respond. “This is obviously what you wanted, setting up such a favorable arrangement.” 

“This most definitely _not_ what I wanted! I’m a hacker, not an…an accountant,” Cat’s stammered. “Why would you even…”

“Recent events have brought certain security vulnerabilities to light…” Eisuke said.

“Mister Ichinomiya, I told you I _patched_ all your…”

“…And made me aware of so many new profitable business opportunities in the technology field.” Eisuke finished. “Not to mention the deals to be made with other businessmen who have had recent breeches. I’m guessing that’s why the CEOs of five major hospitality firms all were the top prospective bidders tonight?”

Cat felt her cheeks flame and she shrugged. That would be the ‘motivated bidders’ she’d planned for. She’d spent _weeks_ researching those companies, all for nothing. “That doesn’t explain the rest of you.”

“My men were always going to handle your protection clause,” Soryu shrugged. “Makes it simpler, and you may be able to do one or two things for the Ice Dragons.”

“I just wanted to hear the mouse squeak, but you can help me with a few minor PR favors,” Ota said.

“Yer going to do my homework.” Detective Kishi said without even raising his head from the couch. “Pain in the ass paperwork…”

Cat turned to Baba.

“I don’t need a hacker,” Baba said with a quiet smile. “But I’ve got a big heist planned, end of the month. I need you, pretty lady.”

_Oh don’t you go smiling at me, you rotten charming ba…_

“It’s going to be up to you to make sure you’re worth our investment, Miss Katsuko Tachibana.” Eisuke said, drawing her attention as he sauntered forward. “You surely know what happens to assets that fail to perform. Or tell anyone. Anything. About the auctions.”

“What? If you want to kill me, you’ll have to get in line.”

“I leave that stuff to Soryu.” Eisuke gave an elegant shrug. “But now you _are_ my hired help. If you’re troublesome I might make what you’re wearing now your work uniform.”

Remembering the glorified leather towel around her, Cat crossed her arms hurriedly across her too-exposed chest. Now it made sense. The outing. The dress. The punishment. They’d never intended to entertain other bids, so it hadn’t mattered how professional she’d looked. 

She’d been distracted by the kindness Baba showed her today. Thoughts of her family. Idiot. It was all just games inside of games. She was playing for her life, but these handsome bastards were just entertaining themselves.

Her cheeks still felt blazing, but Cat forced herself to stand straight. At least this time she didn’t smell of a trash dumpster. She met Eisuke’s amused, cold gaze. 

“Fine. You have my _skills_ for thirty days. Where do I start?”


	7. Comfort Food

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein Eisuke learns you can't train cats, Baba sets personal bests, and Cat finds comfort food surprisingly complicated.

'Where to start' had been, naturally, Eisuke's whims. The penthouse bidders had agreed they'd take turns with Cat's time, and naturally Eisuke went first. Boss had kept Cat busy for the first few days, patching this system and that for Tres Spades. Carefully calculated grunt work, if Baba knew Eisuke.

"Natalie Portman," Ota said.

"Eh, easy. Nozomi Sasaki."

"The model? I actually painted her once."

"Just painted?" Baba asked.

"...it was a busy day. Fine. Scarlett Johanssen."

"Hmm. You're on an American kick," Baba noted.

They were in the Penthouse lounge, Ota and Baba whiling away the time while Eisuke leaned over a laptop, deep in his work.

"What on earth are you two playing?" Mamoru cracked one eye open long enough to ask.

Ota waved a lazy hand. "Just a game. One of us names a famous woman to bed and the other has to top it with another he'd kick her out of bed for."

Mamoru snorted. "Don't let the kid catch you talking like that. She'd kick your pervert asses."

Unbidden, Baba's mind flashed on what Cat would look like, languid and wrapped in bedsheets, flush kissing her cheeks and hair tousled from...

"Baba. It's your turn." Ota kicked him.

"Oh. Uh, right...Rinko Kikuchi." Baba scrounged for a name. She'd played a tech in that new American movie.

"The actress?"

"She's got those eyes." Baba said with a grin. _Same eyes as a certain hacker._ Baba glanced where Eisuke was ignoring them all at his laptop. "Where's our dormouse today, anyway?"

Eisuke didn't look up, but the corner of his mouth twitched. "Getting taken down a notch."

"Now _that_ sounds interesting," Ota sat up.

"The arrogant girl has been too cocky with her duties. It's unacceptable for someone who works for me. Even paging her in the middle of the night--"

"That was you?" Baba snapped it without thinking. The sharp note in his voice made Ota swivel towards him with a raised brow. Baba quickly grinned to recover. "I mean, after all, cute little thing like her needs her beauty rest."

"As if she's getting that in your bed," Ota laughed.

"She's sleeping on his couch," Eisuke said with a smirk when Baba looked at him questioningly. "The penthouse maid works for me too, Baba."

"The couch." Ota tsked. "Slipping in your old age, Baba. Or does the mouse give you troubles?"

Baba shrugged and leaned back with his hands laced behind his head. "Hey, wouldn't be a good thief if I didn't like challenges."

Logistical inertia meant Cat had continued sleeping in Baba's suite after the auction. 'Takes a thief to watch a thief' was Eisuke's sour logic. Not precisely accurate, but Baba was not prone to complain.

Truth was, most nights, after rejecting Baba's offers with a barb and a score (his personal best was up to 4.5, of which Baba was inordinately proud), Cat fell asleep laboring at her laptop. Part of it was Eisuke and his demands, but their hacker was also up to something else, perhaps related to her mysterious pursuers. Baba was certain of it. He knew the signs of a thief on a mission, none of his concern, but something about it worried him.

"Anyway. I gave her three hours to find and repair a rumored backdoor on our network. That was...three and a half hours ago. So she's failed," Eisuke said. "My IT director reassured me that not only was there was no such thing but finding one would be nearly impossible in anything less than a day."

Ota chuckled. "You're training her."

Baba didn't like the sound of that.

"Just maximizing my investment," Eisuke said and turned back to the keyboard, but the sound of feet overhead made them all look up.

"It's done."

Familiar sneakered feet skipped down the steps to the penthouse lounge.

"...And now I need to fire my director of IT..." Eisuke muttered.

"Your precious company network is clean. I finally found a compromised log from a facilities terminal. I wouldn't really call it a _classic_ backdoor but it's gone now." Cat appeared as she rounded the stairs. She raked a hand through her hair warily. "You really should just give me access. It's a pain in the butt hacking your admin accounts and circumventing my _own_ counter measures every time I need to do something."

"You're late. I thought you said you were a professional." Eisuke recovered enough to frown at her before turning back to his keyboard. "You had three hours. I'll be deducting your failure from your payment."

"It wasn't a live vulnerability so I wouldn't be too concerned but--Wait... _What_?" Cat colored. "I think you missed the part where I found an _inactive_ backdoor on a major corporate network. In three hours! Do you know how many people could actually do that?"

"Yet you're the one I asked. I really expected more from all the bragging you've done." Eisuke didn't look up. "A hundred thousand should cover the delay. I trust it won't happen again."

"A hundred thousand...you..." Cat gaped. Her lip trembled, just on the unsaid side of a whole host of curses. Her hand strayed to her hoodie pocket where she gripped something tightly. "Why do I even bother..."

Baba caught the movement and managed to quit admiring the way fury lit dark green highlights in her eyes--when not directed at him. "Was there something else, pretty lady?"

Cat's eyes whipped towards him, then bounced away. Her voice was icy. "That depends. Am I here to take Mr. Ichinomiya's orders or am I here to _do my damn job_ and protect your interests?"

That made Eisuke finally look up. Cat gave a rueful smile.

"First three hours, I fixed your stupid backdoor. Required a lot of digging and skill you _obviously_ aren't able to appreciate. When I was doing that, I noticed a lot of weird outside pings. Nothing getting through since you now have _proper_ security as of a few days ago...but I got curious. Did some snooping. Found a secure forum. Activists, crunchy types. Pissed over something you're building on the water in the middle east? Whatever, they were planning a breach. Already had DDOS attack in the works. Amateur, but I shut them down."

Eisuke considered Cat coldly. "You were still late."

"Really? Really. You're really going to..."

"You will learn my orders are precise and my time is valuable. But just once I'll be generous. A thousand a minute. We'll only deduct thirty thousand this time. Unless you prefer to forfeit your arrangement now?"

Cat opened and closed her mouth. She made a sound, quelched it. Finally, she withdrew her hand from her pocket and held up a usb stick.

"One more thing. As disgusting as I feel doing this. This..." Cat tossed the usb stick onto the desk to skid into Eisuke's laptop. "Is their recorded IPs, their ops as best I can tell, and what identifying info they provided. Detective Kishi and his buddies should be able to do something with that."

Cat stared him down until Eisuke grudgingly picked up the usb. High color in her cheeks, she turned. "If that's all, _boss,_ I'm done for the day."

Cat left the lounge and seemed to take the air with her. The men were quiet for a second before Eisuke flicked the usb to Mamoru. "That girl is a problem."

"Productive," Mamoru shrugged.

Ota grinned."I think I'm in love."

"She's not your type," Baba said quickly.

"But she's yours?"

"Every woman is Baba's type," Eisuke said.

_She's not a type. She's a marvel._

Baba gave his customary smile but didn't respond. Instead his eyes traced down the hall where Cat had disappeared. And then his body followed. Ota's laughter chased him as he exited the lounge.

\----

Cat cracked the egg on the side of the bowl a little too hard. She fished the shell out of the yolk with a curse.

"Huh. I didn't know we actually had a kitchen. Or that you were a stress baker."

Cat twisted. Baba leaned in the doorway of the penthouse's tidy--if obviously never used--kitchen. Soft brown eyes caught her's and Baba held his hands up like a peace treaty.

"This isn't stress baking. It's _angry_   _cooking._ " Cat said, attacking the bowl again. She felt some of her tension seep out of her shoulders. "Which is better because you get the chance to _stab and burn_ things in a socially acceptable context."

"Hmm, that would explain the onion massacre on the counter. What are you making?"

"Oyakodon." Cat motioned to the pan. "Comfort food."

Oyakodon, rice drenched in eggs and chicken and onion goodness. Her food of choice for late night sessions at college. Or staying up late chatting and arguing with Takuto and the others about some latest hack.

She wished she could tell them about what shit she'd pulled off this afternoon. Cat had been foolishly proud of herself for pulling that off. .... _Damn Ichinomiya's stupid face._ If she could tell the others....but Takuto was just her deadman's switch. The less he knew the better. And the others...well. A sting of worry and pain twisted her chest.

The rest of her friends were unreachable, for one reason or another. Some, permanently.

"And dare I ask what those eggs did to you, princess?"

Cat looked down and realized her eggs were quickly on the way to a stiff meringue. She sighed heavily and reached for a new bowl.

A solid warmth appeared at her back that always signaled Baba's presence. Long fingers ghosted over her wrist, stilling her movement.

"Give it here. Do me a favor and let a guy cook something for a beautiful woman." Baba stole the bowl out of her hands deftly. "Besides, didn't anyone tell you food tastes better cooked with love?"

"I don't know. Rage and spite can be tastey in the right application." Cat allowed herself to be nudged to the side. She slid to perch at the edge of the counter and watched as Baba shucked off his jacket, rolling the sleeves of his dress shirt past his elbows.

Since the whole was a bit of a mystery, Cat found herself perpetually experiencing the thief in bits and pieces like this. His arms were subtle, like the rest of him. Soft tan skin and muscles that corded and flexed slightly as he cleaned up the cooking chicken, putting Cat's ragged knife skills to shame. She found her eyes drawn to the long fingers arched over the back of the chef knife. The way his brow lowered in concentration. And the curve of his arm and lean tension that disappeared up the sleeve to...

Well. Enough of that. _You've_ b _een stuck in this penthouse too long._ Cat returned her gaze to the stove as Baba redistributed the mixture with an expert flick of the pan. "A master thief who cooks?"

"A man must have many talents if he's going to impress an exceptional lady like you. Would you like me to make you breakfast?"

"Oh no. I'm not walking into that one. Four." But Cat found Baba's smile contagious despite herself.

"You're missing out," Baba lowered the heat to a simmer. "Do you like to cook when you're not in a murderous rage?"

Cat leaned her elbows back against the counter. "Not particularly. But usually because I didn't have the right ingredients. Scholarship student, remember? I was on a ramen budget."

"I see. So what's the money really for?" Baba asked suddenly, startling Cat enough to meet his eyes. "You were upset when Boss brought it up."

"Why wouldn't I? Not all of us are playboys that drop millions on a lark."

"Is that what I am..." Baba's mutter was dry and to himself, though his smile stayed tacked in place. "Come on. Don't try to fool a thief, princess. I know how much these things cost. You originally wanted two million and settled for one. That's still much more than you need for a new identity, but not nearly enough to set you up for good. If you were just greedy, you wouldn't be so upset over a thousand here or there. What's the money really for?"

Baba kept his concentration on the food, but Cat caught his eyes as they slanted her way. It wasn't a mocking look. The earnestness was strange, alien on the thief's smile. Cat let out a slow breath. "Fine...part of it's to disappear, yeah. The rest is for my brothers. College."

"Ah, family." Baba quieted. His face took a thoughtful turn. There was just the sizzling of food in the pan.

"My little brother, Haru, mostly. I promised him we'd work together so he could go to any university that he could get into." Cat found herself talking again, somewhat to her own surprise. "Sixteen, loves dogs and Pokemon and ...molecular biology. He's a pain in the ass, but he's smart. Really smart. Makes me look like a stumbling idiot--"

"I have hard time believing that."

"It's true. And not just with blips on the screen, like me. The kind of brain and big heart that'll actually help people." Cat felt a goofy grin spreading across her face as she thought of it. "He started trying to cultivate his own experiments when he was six. My mother screamed bloody murder when she found a loaf worth of moldy bread and a box of pillbugs hidden under his bed."

"Mold?"

"He had just read about penicillin."

"And the pillbugs?"

"Don't ask me. I just ran his statistical models for him. After that he moved on to mice." A laugh escaped her throat before it stumbled on Baba's gaze. He chuckled, smiled at her. Not a smirk or a come-hither or a taunt. Just a smile brimming with kindness that warmed to her toes.

_Oh, no. Don't go doing that._

Cat studied the ceiling but couldn't quite rid herself of her improved mood. "Anyway. He's going to get an anonymous scholarship, if I can swing it. Hey, are you burning the goods over there or..."

"Almost there. Hmm." Baba hummed as he took a taste from a spoon. "What do you think?"

Baba slid forward with the spoon. His free hand left the pan. A long, lean arm snaked past her to lean lightly on the counter. Cat found herself squared in and she froze. Cheeks warm, mouth bit closed in surprise.

The corners of Baba's lips drifted up, suddenly so close now. "Pretty please, princess. It's your dish after all."

Cat reluctantly dropped her mouth open. Baba dipped the spoon and Cat swallowed the chicken mixture. Tasted absolutely none of it. Because she was far too busy staring at the sunlight-and-bourbon brown eyes hovering inches from her face.

"Ah...yeah. Needs more...mirin?" Cat said in what she hoped was a normal voice.

"Mirin, really? ...Oh, you missed a spot." Baba's free hand cupped her face with a feather touch. A thumb skimmed slowly over her bottom lip.

Cat started like she'd been shocked. She had. A jolt traced a line from where his thumb met her lip. Diffused into a cloudy, confusing heat in her chest.

Baba leaned back. Smile most definitely teasing now. He sucked on the thumb with a wink. "Hmm, I don't know. Seems just sweet enough as it is."

_A flirt. Just a flirt. This is what he does. Right? Right. Stay in your lane, woman._

When Baba finally raised his brows, Cat realized she probably had forgotten to speak or blink for the last thirty seconds. She gave a weak cough and turned for silverware. "Well, you asked my opinion. Now stop being weird and hand me a bowl of that."

Baba parceled her a steaming bowl of food and slid it next to her. The silent smile finally pushed Cat over the edge. "What is it, Baba?"

"Sorry, princess. You just forgot my score. I'm taking that as a compliment."

"Oh, that." Cat studied her rice intently. Very intently. "Five."

"Five! Personal best. See, I've already broke half way and I've got three more weeks left."

Baba's face broke into a sunbeam. He wiped his hands and reached for his jacket. "Better stop while I'm ahead."

"You're leaving?"

"Got some work to do, pretty lady. Not all of us can surprise Eisuke Ichinomiya into a day off." Baba tossed her the kitchen towel and was gone.

Which left Cat alone in a silent kitchen with a bowl of rice and a strange warmth coiled in her stomach that couldn't be entirely attributed to comfort food.

 

\---

  
_catatonic:_ _When most I wink, then do mine eyes best see_  


  
_takkun:_ this is stupid. i know it's you

  
_catatonic:_ quit whining and pull up the damn sonnet takkun

_takkun: And darkly bright are bright in dark directed_

  
_catatonic:_ _When in dead night thy fair imperfect shade_  


  
_takkun:_ whatever. did you see Bl0om made the news?

  
_catatonic:_ shit. why?

  
_takkun:_ the university hack. feds are threatening him with some trumped up charges.

  
_catatonic:_ that's...that's ridiculous. B didn't even _take_ anything with that. He just wanted to see if he could. you know how he is.

  
_takkun:_ duh. They're obvs trying to send a message. B's not taking it well.

  
_takkun:_ ...I gotta ask. this have anything to do with what you guys got up to?

  
_takkun:_ cat?

  
_catatonic:_ ...yeah. probably. It's not the feds.

  
_takkun:_ this is getting serious, cat

  
_catatonic:_ I know. I know. I'm...working on it.

  
  



	8. Do Not Touch the Artwork

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baba and Cat head out for a field trip.

Mamoru managed to smoke even while sleeping. The stub of the cigarette dwindled to a red ember without falling past slack lips. Mesmerizing until he started to snore.

"Now that's a magic trick," Cat mumbled as she idly surfed her favorite sites.

"Hey, kid. Less talkin', more workin'." Cat had ceased to be surprised when Mamoru could hold conversations mid-nap.

"I _am_ working, Detective. Done in two tics." Cat waved a hand at her laptop, which was still busy churning through file uploads.

When Mamoru had announced he would have her deal with his paperwork for him, Cat had worried she'd spend a week trying to decipher and transcribe his chicken-scratch handwriting or spin up fake reports to cover his slacking, but instead Mamoru had gave her a usb. Full of digital reports neatly organized and numbered, and ready to upload to the police database. Surprisingly organized for a slacker. Compiling a script to automate that had taken all of five minutes.

"You do realize you gave me a job where I could be replaced with a very small shell script, right?"

"Did I? Pssh. That's just what I had on hand. You finish those and you can take the rest of the day off 'long as you don't bother me."

"A day off?"

"Or whatever. Probably need it after cleaning up Ichinomiya's mess."

Well, that was true. But after his little test, the arrogant hotelier had begun framing his requests with context and what he wanted achieved, rather than imperious orders and ultimatums. Left Cat to do her work. He still didn't say please and continued to use threats as motivational devices, but Cat called it progress. The two a.m. calls stopped, too. Finally, this morning Eisuke had announced he was 'done with her' for the moment. Then Mamoru had told her to help him with this cake job. It was a breather.

"Detective Kishi, you're a softie," Cat said.

"Shuddup, kid."

"I don't know, Kishi's not that nice to-- ...Dammit, the square is melting faster..." Baba was hunkered down on the opposite couch, along with Ota. Spread on the coffee table before them were a number of glasses half-filled with ice. Three pieces of different shaped ice lay melting on the tabletop with pencils balanced precariously atop each one. Baba hovered over the ice with a stopwatch in hand. As Cat watched, another pencil teetered and rolled off the ice as it shifted.

"I told you, it's all about surface area." Ota said, making an idle notation in his sketch book.

Cat turned away from the snoring detective. "Dare I ask what you're doing now...?"

"We're watching ice melt," Ota said.

"I gathered that much. Why?"

"Boredom," Baba flashed her a crooked smile before turning his attention back to a fresh set of ice cubes. "Why else? We are, as you said, just rich playboys."

"Maybe you want to entertain us instead, mousie?" Ota said, draining his drink. "Are you getting lonely over there?"

Cat saw the devil's glint in the eye of the 'angelic artist'. She snorted and raised her laptop. "Nope. Working for Detective Kishi and then I need to reset the switch for the day."

Ota made a sulking moue, exchanged a look with Baba then wandered off for another drink. Glass tinkled as Baba set up another 'race' of ice determinedly. Cat shook her head and pulled the laptop back to her lap.

 

\---

  
_catatonic:_ _Take this kiss upon thy brow!_  


_takkun_ : _Yet if hope has flown away_  


_catatonic:_ _Is but a dream within a dream_  


_takkun:_ you are such a weirdo

_takkun:_ these poems don't even make any sense out of order

_takkun:_ and if you show anyone these logs I will kill you

_catatonic:_ you're the best, takkun

_catatonic:_ any update on bl0om's case?

_takkun:_ dunno. he disappeared online a few days ago.

_takkun:_ was thinking of looking into it

_catatonic_ : don't

_catatonic:_ I'm serious, Takkun. This wasn't your group that got into shit. It's mine. My problem.

_takkun_ : ok geez. just trying to help

_catatonic:_ you are

Cat closed out the chat and sighed deeply. Bl0om wasn't just another random hacker in her and Takuto's acquaintance. He was a friend. Lived out in Osaka somewhere, she thought. They'd never met in person but she'd known him since they were kids, hanging out in Naruto chatrooms. They learned everything together, her and Bl0om and Xen and the rest. Takuto had come later, and while she trusted Takuto with her life right now, he'd always been a lone wolf. He wasn't part of the hacktivist nerd pod that had this bomb dropped in their laps a month ago.

No, not a bomb, Cat thought darkly, a SOS.

But Bl0om wasn't cut out for this. She teased him that his handle was Bl0om because he was such a flower child. Sweet, curious, idealistic. He was the best of them at pen tests, but never stole a damn thing, just poking around and figuring out puzzles just to see if he could. To make the world better.

_Dammit._

She chewed on her lip a moment then pulled up a burner email she hadn't used yet. Double-checked her Tor browser status to make sure she was anonymous, and sent a six word email to Bl0om's last known address. " _Hang on. I will fix this."_  


She hit send and hoped it was true.

\---

"All those ones and zeroes causing you trouble?" Cat looked up to find Baba had turned his attention from his ice experiments to watch her from the opposite chair.

Cat quickly dumped the logs and shut down the laptop. "No more than usual. What's up?"

"This is a jail break." Baba's eyes glinted with mischief. He moved to slide into the seat next to hers.

"You mean get out of the penthouse?" Cat perked up. She was beginning to go a little stir crazy. "We can do that?"

"You and me, clever woman, we can do anything. We'll call it work release. You interested?"

Cat narrowed her eyes. "Wait. What do you need me to hack?"

That seemed to catch Baba by surprise. His head tilted, grin softening. He snatched her hand up and looked firmly in her eyes. "Absolutely nothing."

"But then why--"

"I'm never going to be here for your technical work, pretty lady. I can promise you that."

The way he said it, with eyes heated with something not quite like a glare, Cat wasn't sure whether to be insulted or not. Around the penthouse, Cat was prone to err on the side of insulted. It stung. More the stung, but Cat wasn't willing to admit that. He didn't think she was useful after all she'd done? _Fine. See if I care._ She tightened her jaw and shrugged.

"Whatever. Have it your way."

"Great!" Baba was all smiles again. He squeezed her hand then let go, already meandering out of the lounge. "Go get changed."

"But where--"

"You'll see!"

\----

What Cat saw was the lobby of one of Tokyo's largest art museums. When they arrived at the steps, all Baba had done was deposit a wad of cash in her hand and told her he'd meet her inside. It was a busy day and the lobby bustled with visitors and various school groups. Cat was studying a pamphlet for the most recent exhibit--jewels of the Russian czarinas--when a warm hand rested on the curve of her back.

"If we were going on a field trip I would have preferred the lib--" Cat turned and the grin hesitated on her face. "Uh. Hi."

A college-age guy had her arm. An expensive haircut that ended in bleach-frosted tips, biceps that also looked expensive, and a t-shirt that bragged in comic sans about his sexual prowess. Charming. Cat shrugged off the arm.

The dudebro just flashed a grin. "I know you! We had freshman comp together, right?"

"I think you're mistaken."

"No, pretty sure. Always thought you were pretty hott."

And Cat always thought _this motherfucker_ didn't have two brain cells to rub together. She remembered him now. Part of the frat brigade, spent most of the class sniggering at literary metaphors like they were twelve. _Ugh._  


Cat gave the tight-lipped smile every woman had in her repertoire but no dudes seemed to understand. "...yeah, right. Sorry to disappoint, I need to go find my frie--"

"God, chill. Will you? Can't you take a compliment?" The hand reappeared on her shoulder tightened painfully. "You were a stuck-up bitch in class too. I am just being nice..."

Cat curled her hand into a fist as her pulse picked up. She was trying to keep a low profile but she'd cause a scene if it meant getting rid--

A cheery voice broke the tension. "Please do not touch the artwork, sir!"

The dudebro's face contorted. Baba appeared behind her harasser's shoulder, with the bro's free hand pinched backwards in what looked like a very painful position.

"What--"

"While you obviously have an eye for beauty, we simply _must_ insist you refrain from touching the artwork." Baba's expression turned even sunnier as he twitched his wrist and sent the frat boy staggering away from her.

"Thank you for your cooperation!" It only took another dangerously smiling, knife-edge glance to encourage the boy to keep moving.

Cat let out a sigh she hoped sounded more annoyed than relieved.

"You were just waiting for an excuse to use that line. Zero points. I could have handled..." She stopped when she got a better look at Baba. "That's...a different look for you."

Downright sedate for the thief. Instead of a wine red jacket and tie, Baba wore a subdued polo and slacks with a navy blazer. Fine silver glasses edged his laughing eyes and his normally shaggy hair was pulled into a messy bun.

Despite the clothes being about ten years out of fashion, Cat had to admit it was a good look. The polo lacked the starch of his usual shirts and Cat noted how broad his shoulders were. Baba always seemed like such a tall skinny sneak, but he continued to surprise her.

"Like it?" Baba modeled cheerfully. "Gotta dress up for a date with a beautiful woman."

"Not a date, Baba."

"Gotta dress up to escort a beautiful woman."

"We are _so_ not calling you my escort."

"Gotta dress up for an absolutely uneventful, mundane outing, still coincidentally with a beautiful woman."

"I'll allow it. Four." Cat's frown cracked, losing the remains of tension from the earlier incident. "An absolutely uneventful outing, hmm? Who are we cosplaying as this time?"

"It's not obvious? Museum Docent. Want a personal tour?"

"Baba, is this a--"

"Come, princess." Baba nipped the pamphlet out of her hand and gestured to the stairs. "Allow me to paint you a tale of the romantic and tragically doomed czars of Mother Russia..."

Cat played along, if only because Baba's Russian accent really was astoundingly, pitifully terrible. And not because she found it cute. Not at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be the whole museum caper but this chapter was getting LONG. So here's the first part with room for delightful dudebro shaming. Stay tuned for clever hijinks and the appearance of detective Ayase!


	9. Why the hell not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cat sees Baba in action, meets his number one fan, and learns the delicious perks of a guy in a tie.
> 
> [Trigger Warning for: very mild inference to child molestation]

The Russian exhibit was full of sparkling things. Cat expected Baba to go on about the value of the gems, cut and quality, or at least about their inherent rarity. Thief and all. But instead Baba seemed to have an endless repertoire of romantic and tragic stories. What dramatic fate befell this czarina while wearing this necklace. The romantic tale of why that bracelet was created for a royal marriage. He was either a history buff or did a startling amount of research for his museum docent disguise.

Cat was about to say as much when a curvy redhead approached and asked Baba-the-Docent for directions to a specific jewel exhibit. It took all of three seconds for Cat to ascertain that the woman rather hoped for a personal tour too.

Rather than pass her off with a smooth diversion like Cat expected, Baba hesitated a beat then lit his thousand watt smile. "Let me walk you over, miss. Pardon me just a moment, ma'am?"

_Wait, she's a miss and I'm a ma'am?_ Cat arched a brow with as much icey vinegar as she could manage, but Baba was already sweeping off with the woman towards a set of glass cases at the back of the large hall.

When he didn't come back after several minutes, Cat allowed herself some sour brooding which she was certain was because they were _wasting time_ and not at all to do with the airy giggles that floated from the back hall. _So much for don't touch the artw--_  


"Oh! Don't touch!" Cat found herself repeating Baba before she realized it, hurrying over to where a pigtailed girl reached towards a painting.

The green blazer said she belonged to the field trip group that had been making their way through the museum the same time as Baba and Cat. The girl flinched down with a guilty look and Cat sighed. "You're not in trouble. You just could damage them if you touch them."

The girl recovered with a sullen look. "That's wrong. Touching is ok if no one finds out."

Something about the flat way the girl said it sounded...troubling. Cat wrinkled her brow at the girl. "Where did you hear something like that...?"

"Nowhere. Grown ups touch stuff all the time. Saw him playing with the glass in the other room." The girl jerked a finger and Cat turned to look. She pointed to Baba, now fully into the part as museum docent, this time in an animated discussion with one of the field trip's teachers.

_Oh, of course he did._

Cat grasped the girl's hands with a wink. "That's because he works here, right? See the coat?"

The grade schooler fiddled antsily with her shirt. "I guess...but can't he hurt the paintings too? He could take something!"

"Stealing is very bad." Cat intoned with a serious nod and deep sense of irony. Oh sweet jeebus. She needed to redirect this kid. "But so is jumping to conclusions. Tell you what. If you don't say anything, I won't tell that shifty-looking docent you were touching the paintings."

"Who's shifty-looking?" Baba appeared over her shoulder. He had his docent coat off again and looked maligned.

The girl made a yipping noise and skittered off to rejoin her classmates.

Cat sighed and stood. "This is still just a relaxing visit to the museum, huh?"

"Aren't you relaxed, princess?" Baba gave her a sunny smile. Then he peered down to examine her. "Why the scary face?"

"Baba, someone saw you. You better not be--"

A low beeping alarm cut her off, making everyone in the room, except for Baba, jump. Docents and security hurried into the hall and Cat shot an alarmed look at the thief that was far too relaxed by her side.

"Did you?"

"Did I what, sweetheart?"

"Shouldn't we be...I don't know, running?"

"Why in the world would we run, my goddess?" Baba's petnames got more syrupy the more amused he got. He watched staff swarm around the glass cases towards the back then slowly begin working their way through the crowd. "Gosh. I hope they catch them."

"Baba--"

"Just watch." Baba twined his hand in hers and inclined his chin. Cat turned. A clatter drew the attention of the security staff. A trio of small gems skittered across the floor at a school teacher's feet. The teacher Baba had just been entertaining. Another string of pearls hung from his pocket.

Security zeroed in rapidly. The man's startled protests grew faint as guards walked him off. The other teachers appeared dumbfounded, then the room lit up with activity as they began reorganizing the students.

"Baba!" Cat was horrified. She twisted her hand out of his. "You just set up that poor man--"

"Poor man who will never work with children again." Baba tightened his jaw then turned to her with a sour-crooked smile. "Stealing is very bad, after all. A felony."

"...Never work with children again?"

Her gaze slid over the student group and landed on the little girl she talked to before. The way she'd jumped. The flat, robotic little voice she'd had. " _Touching isn't bad if no one finds out."_  

Oh god. Her heart clenched like a fist. Cat turned a disbelieving look on Baba.

"He was a...and preying on his own student?"

"More than one," Baba said. "But not anymore. When they empty his pockets at the station, they'll find more evidence than just some stolen trinkets."

"How'd you know?

"I have my sources. The kids were talking. Just ...no one was listening."

Cat studied Baba's profile. There was still a smile on his lips--there was always a smile on Baba's lips--but it was quieted with something she couldn't describe.

"So who listened to you?"

"What?" Baba startled. "What do you mean?"

"Tch. You heard me. Who did the same for you, once upon a time? No one sets up this kind of overly-complicated plot to foil one bad man for a handful of kids without a reason."

"You're saying you wouldn't have, Miss white-hat hacker?"

"I might, if I'd heard about it," Cat said. "But I could also do it from my laptop on a lark. You made quite an effort to see this guy get caught."

"And, pray tell, lovely lady, how would you have handled it?"

"You're trying to distract me, Baba." But Cat pursed her lips momentarily as she considered. "You could just spoof his accounts. Make him get sloppy. Call attention to his IP and activity for the police. But, really? I would have probably just leaked his information to the right, nasty reddit forum. Sit back and let the virtual mob take it from there."

"...well, remind me to not get on your bad side."

Cat looked down. "I never said I was a good person."

"I think you're a remarkable person," Baba said.

Cat couldn't read his face when he said things like that without the florid embellishments. "You're still dodging the question."

"Am I?"

Security began taping off the case where the jewels had been displayed at the back of the room. Cat diverted her mind to consider the scene. "Have it your way. But I gotta know. How did you delay the...?"

Cat turned and addressed empty air.

She swung around to look for Baba and nearly ran into a skinny suit. She let out a squawk and a stranger back pedaled quickly.

"Sorry, sorry! Oh. Gosh, ma'am, you're..." The scrawny man trailed off. He was young and looked nothing so much as a startled meerkat in glasses. Cat caught his eyes skittering up and down her. She frowned until she also caught sight of the detective's shield hanging off his ill-fitting suit.

"Oh, you're a detective?"

"Oh! Yes! Detective Ayase, ma'am. Special investigations. I, uh, just came over to ask you a few questions as a witness. May I get your name?"

Cat couldn't exactly use the name of a missing college girl. "Uh, Ada. Ada Lovelace."

Detective Ayase had zero reaction, much to Cat's disappointment.

"Thank you, Miss Lovelace." His adam's apple bobbed nervously. Hopefully. "It is Miss?"

The twitchy detective was cute in his meerkat-y way, but Cat was beginning to begrudge Baba abandoning her to him. "Yes, detective. It is most definitely Miss."

"Wonderful," the detective said with a bit too much enthusiasm. "Ah, did you happen to see anything before the alarms went off?"

"Afraid not, I was talking with one of the kids from the field trip."

"Right. Did you notice anything suspicious, hear anything? You didn't happen to see...a man wearing a red jacket and fedora?"

Cat hoped the surprise on her face came across as civic interest rather than alarm. "I can honestly say I haven't seen anyone dressed that way today, Detective Ayase. Why? I thought you already caught the suspect red-handed?"

"That's true..." the detective looked put out at this apparent success. "To tell you the truth, I'm chasing Lupin, a criminal of some note who is terrorizing the city. Perhaps you've heard of him?"

"I don't follow the news much."

"Oh," Ayase seemed to warm to the subject. "He's the best thief in recent history. Brilliant and crafty...there's nowhere he can't infiltrate. Amazing stuff. This seems like his kind of work so I had to investigate. I've been following him since I became a detective."

The detective's eyes had a trembling shine to him Cat had only previously seen in shojo manga. _Uh.._ She tilted her head. "And you want to... _arrest_ him, right?"

"Oh, yes. I will!" Ayase was suddenly fierce. He snapped his notebook closed. "I've come close a few times, but I'll get him. I, Detective Ayase, will stop Lupin's reign of terror!"

"Well. You...do that. I'm sorry I can't be of more help, Detective."

Cat knew obsessed when she saw it. She made what she hoped were appropriate, upstanding citizen noises until the detective turned to the next witness. She hesitated in the gallery a moment, but as more security filtered in she figured it'd be better to not be caught loitering. No Baba in sight, so Cat wandered out the back to the museum's statuary garden. Let the stupid thief find her when he was done playing Robin Hood.

 

\----

 

It didn't take long. Cat had only just cleared the crowds milling at the steps of the garden when one of the statues seemed to speak in a familiar, smug hum.

"Ice."

Cat made a startled noise and only a long arm looped around her waist kept her from jumping. She turned to find Baba, back in his usual attire, fedora and cocky smile in hand.

"Ice?" Cat resisted the urge to punch him in the shoulder. Barely.

"You were asking how I delayed the motion sensor alarm." Baba smiled, rattling his soda cup before tossing it in the trash as they passed. "Ice."

"Ice...oh, as a timing mechanism! You set something to trigger the alarm as it melted. So that fooling around this morning..." Cat let out a surprised laugh. "Right. So I take it that was your number one fan I met in there."

Baba made a face. "Ayase is...persistent."

"Well he is after the _great_ Lupin," Cat said sarcastically, but Baba was ever buoyant.

"See. I knew you'd recognize my genius eventually, my lady."

Cat's lips twitched and she studied the statues as they passed. "You know, I heard the Lupin is known for helping people. And he's been around for quite a while. You don't look nearly old enough."

"Someone's been doing her research. Did your deadman tell you that?"

Baba's mild question made Cat freeze. She slowed to a stop near an abstract curve of marble. "...you knew?"

"That you were actually talking to someone during your daily check-ins?" Baba touched a soothing hand to her shoulder, thumb tracing her collarbone in an entirely distracting manner. "It wasn't hard. I've been watching you type in your 'code' every day for approaching two weeks and your face is terribly unguarded when you work, pretty lady. No program makes a person smile or frown that much. It's cute, though."

"But ...you didn't tell the others?"

"That you lied?" Baba gave that practiced smile. "More efficient at this point to alert the presses when you tell the truth, Cat."

"I..probably deserve that one." Cat let out a tense sigh. "I haven't said anything about the auctions to Tak...to my contact. I swear. I just didn't want to get anyone else involved."

"You didn't seem worried about involving us, as I recall."

"Yeah, well. I thought you lot were assholes who seemed like you could handle yourselves."

"....were? Thought? Past tense?"

"...And _that's_ the part you focus on...Anyway," Cat straightened and turned. They had so many of these conversations in a sidelong way, corner of their mouths, corner of their eyes. It was like they were both nurturing something strange and fragile that would wilt if looked head on. But she wanted to say this to Baba's face.

"Thanks. For not telling anyone. And for giving me a breather from the Penthouse. And everything else." Every word felt more intimate looking right into Baba's face. His expression flickered from surprise to pleased, and Cat had to cross her arms to resist looking away.

She wasn't shy, precisely, far from it. But she had always done better behind a screen than staring a handsome man in the face. The traitorous red in her cheeks and urge to look away did not match her words. It was a quality about herself that irritated her to no end. "I mean, you're still ridiculous but...you treat me like I'm actually a human rather than a tool or a card to play. I...appreciate that."

Baba had an expression on his face that Cat couldn't read. He finally said, quietly. "Anything for you."

Cat about strained her ears listening for the _pretty lady_ or _princess_ at the end of that, or some brow-waggling quip about showing appreciation. She'd even had a score ready, prepared to be slightly more generous--6, 7 even! To show that she meant it. But none of that came. They looked at each other in a surprisingly comfortable silence.

"...you're...too cute." Baba muttered and rubbed his face before suddenly striding towards the exit. "Let's get you back to the castle, princess."

"Hey, Baba. Wait." Cat reached out to snag his coat, but her fingers latched onto the tail of his tie instead. She yanked to arrest his escape. "I'm trying to talk here."

That brought up Baba short and turned him with a surprised grunt. Baba's face looked the same, but there was a flush to his tan skin. Soft brown eyes widened slightly and there was tension in his shoulders. Crimson dappling his cheeks.

Baba was blushing.

_Holy hell. That's new._

Cat canted her head. It couldn't have been anything she said. She thought of all the times Baba had swept her this way or that, teased her effortlessly, maneuvered her--how every gently--into a corner. Always had a clever quip or smooth line for every occasion. She'd retaliated with dismissive scores and banter, and they'd settled into an amiable back and forth these last couple weeks. She found it irritated and warmed her at the same time, if that was possible. It was like fencing, with this man.

_About damn time he gets surprised for once._

Cat considered him. The Baba presented to the world was all slick Tokyo sunset: imported bourbon in cut crystal, neon and slick glass, cheerful technicolor alleys. A glamour of sakura over everything. And that Baba was still there, but the blush slipped a different kind of sunset through. A warmer one that shined on unruly country, raw rooftops, burnt sugar and uncertain, startled boys who fell off of their script.

Not polished; somehow even more appealing.

Cat suddenly had no inclination to let go of the tie. She pinched it as she studied him. It forced Baba to lean over her. Off balance in more ways than one.

Cat swallowed and tried to bring her pulse back into line. "I said stop with the jokes. I was being serious."

Baba's breath was warm on her cheek, this close. There was a flutter to it. Voice low. "Maybe I'm getting more serious by the moment."

_...oooh. That was..nice. Dammit, Baba, s_ he thought. And then:

_...oh why the hell not._

Fingers twined on the tie. Just a millimeter tug. A twitch, nothing more, but that was all it took. Baba slid forward. He drew close enough that she felt a whisper of shaggy, caramel hair brush her cheek. Whiskey eyes filled her vision and Cat couldn't quite bring herself to close her own.

"Oh, Miss Lovelace!"

Cat froze. The voice came from across the green, in the direction of the museum and the police investigation now in progress. An investigation which he had instigated and she had given a fake identity and...other complications.

_...Oh, yes. **That's** why not. _

Baba halted his movement but didn't pull away from their rather intimate position. He chuckled quietly. "Lovelace?"

"At least someone recognizes it. I was entertaining myself." Cat belatedly remembered to release Baba's tie and smoothed it down absently, feeling like an idiot. Her cheeks warmed and she cleared her throat. "You don't look like a docent anymore. You shouldn't let Ayase see you."

"I think he's more interested in seeing you."

"Heh. You didn't hear how he talks about Lupin."

"Jealous, pretty lady?" Baba asked and Cat snorted.

"Are you?"

"Wildly."

"Oh, just go." Cat gave a shove.

Baba grimaced, but reluctantly withdrew. He slid around the corner of the statue and when Cat glanced behind her he was gone. She just had time to school her face as Ayase came jogging up.

"Was that man bothering you just now, Miss Lovelace?" The detective had a serious look on his narrow face.

"Yes, but he ran when he saw you coming. Thank you, Detective."

"Well, yes." Ayase seemed to fluff up under the compliment, looking even more like a baby meerkat. "Young ladies such as yourself are why I--"

"Was there something you needed, Detective Ayase?" Cat interrupted then tried to think how an appropriately helpless young maiden would act--Cat had many female friends, but none of them helpless...or maidens for that matter. "I, uh, have just been _exhausted_ by all these shocking criminal events today..."

Cat couldn't see Baba, but she was fairly certain a topiary somewhere behind her snorted.

"I just wanted...to give you this." Detective Ayase held out a business card with a deep, formal bow, both hands extended. When Cat didn't move, he poked his head up and added helpfully, "For the investigation! In case you remember anything! Or need police assistance. Or advice. ...or dinner..."

"Didn't catch that last part," Cat said but very awkwardly took the card. "Thank you, detective. I'll...erh, file this. I really should be getting home now."

Ayase beamed at her for another several painfully silent moments before taking the hint and retreating the way he came. Cat waited again until he was out of sight then turned on her heel. Baba was there and, this time, she didn't jump.

She eyed him, gauging his smile, but it was practiced and easy again. The moment--whatever temporary insanity had possessed them a minute before--had broken. Cat firmly told herself she wasn't disappointed.

Baba offered his arm. "If my lady is done with her suitors..."

Cat snorted. "Don't start. He's your detective. This is your fault."

"Hey. Long as you leave the party with me, princess."

"Five and a half."

"See? My average is getting higher."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think it's obligatory in a Baba-fic to sit back and just watch Baba be Baba and enoy these two dorks for a minute before things get dramatic. Finding I'm missing writing in the Baba POV here, but never fear--we get more of him next chapter! (And shit hits the fan...)


	10. We know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takkun delivers the worst news, and Cat is prone to doing very stupid things when she's upset. Baba comforts her, and comes to a very important decision of his own. Cat's plans begin to fall apart.  
> TRIGGER WARNING: discussion of suicide and survivor's guilt.

 Cat knew she was getting too close to Baba. Knew it in the way her pulse lept up when he was around, even as her mind relaxed. The way she wondered and worried when he was gone. This whole situation was temporary, a careful house of cards all depending on timing the tremors of the city just right. Temporary shelter before it all, inevitably, fell down. Baba was the Joker in the deck. A distraction, even a comforting one, was going to cost her.

But it was the next day that the cards began to fall apart with a cost she hadn't seen coming.

 

_**catatonic:** "turning turning in the widening gyre"_  
_**takkun:** hey. stop._  
_**catatonic:** come on, takkun. You don't have to bitch about the verify ev_  
_**takkun:** have you seen the news?_  
_**catatonic:** no. should I have?_  
_**takkun:** Bl0om's dead_  
_**takkun:** here's the link_  
_**takkun:** suicide._  
_**takkun:** I'm sorry, cat. I knew you were closer to him._  
_**takkun:** cat?_  
_**takkun:** u there?_  
_**takkun:** cat?_

The article blurred in Cat's eyes and her head suddenly felt hot, too boiling with shock to hold in the information she was reading. Bl0om's name had been Lai Irichi. They'd been friends since they were twelve and she hadn't known that. She had known he had two older siblings, and one article was accompanied by a family photo from happier times. Cat hadn't scrolled quick enough past that to miss it. According to the article, he'd been found at school by an unlucky classmate in his dorm. Cat read between the lines enough to see they didn't look too deep; no police investigation warranted or needed.

Depression, the school experts cited in the article had said. Lai had been missing school for the last week, slipping in grades. Withdrawing from his friends. Classic signs. The pressure from the federal investigation had just been too much for him and he'd cracked.

_BULLSHIT._

Cat wiped at her eyes furiously, took another jagged breath as she closed the tab. His family had already started a memorial page for him on a social network Bl0om always loved to hate. They didn't know him. _Cat_ knew him. They might have known Lai, but they didn't know Bl0om.

Bl0om, who cared more about fighting the good fight than stealing anything. Than winning anything. Who shared everything with her in their infinite chat logs that existed all the way back to middle school.

But still. Doubt.

Depression was a mean son-of-a-bitch disease that struck anyone, Cat knew that, but she couldn't see it in Bl0om, not now. Someone had to have found him, hurt him. If not, that meant she'd missed something, a sign, a cry for help...either way...

Maybe Cat had killed him, too.

She wasn't sure what she wanted to believe. Even if Bl0om had killed himself, Cat _had_ surely killed him. For causing this. For not noticing. For... _oh god. It was her fault._

The thought had hit her and just began to sink it's fangs in around the edges when another thought came just as quickly: the email. If Bl0om had did this, he would have sent a message first.

When Cat got the inbox of her burner email open, there was one new message waiting. Cat saw the familiar encryption fingerprint and had a moment of grief-stricken fear. Maybe it was a last email from him. Maybe Bl0om had been depressed, maybe she hadn't seen the signs, too blind by her own sense of self preservation.

But then she clicked on the email.

It was a single sentence, sent from Bl0om's last known address.

_"We know you."_

Cat's blood ran cold.

That was not an email Bl0om would send. That wasn't a sentence Bl0om would even write. The fuckers had gotten a hold of Bl0om and managed to get a hold of his private passwords. Cat tried not to imagine what they would have had to have done to Bl0om to make him share that, but the images flicked across her mind anyway. And then suddenly her blood wasn't cold anymore.

It was boiling.

"Fine. Want a target? You got one." Cat's voice sounded strange even to her own ears. Caught somewhere between a sob and a growl and the leagues of terror stacked in-between. Her fingers flew across the keyboard, slamming together commands and hacks and marshaling her very considerable digital army in a teary red, furious haze.

And all of it was pointed at the very respectable-looking, expensive website of the Church of Friends.

Cat cleared her eyes again and clenched onto that taunting line in the email: _We know you._

"Well. Now everyone's going to know you."

The Church of Friends was more than just a respectable religion--it was _the_ worship of choice for the rich and famous. It courted favor with rising stars and was especially trendy with the new rich of the tech boom. Entrepreneurs and gurus flocked to it. New agey and hip, it had all the celebrities crowing on talk shows about enlightenment and cosmic blessings and other things that made it sound utterly silly, but harmless.

That was the brand, with their creepy silver mask symbol. And Cat and her friends had bought it line and sinker.

Which was why when a backdoor to the Church's private servers dropped in their channel from an anonymous source, it seemed like another harmless prank. Hack the woos, she'd tried to goad the others into it but while they were happy to be entertained by her efforts, it'd been Cat who'd ultimately set down with a six pack of red bull one Saturday night and an inclination to snark her way through a likely boring but possibly scandalous religious organization.

She hadn't even bothered to be too careful about it after all--they were a church for pity's sake. She just did a smash and grab once she got access, pulling and copying all the data in reach to sort through for lulz later. She hadn't even noted how deep she was into unnamed servers at the time. Why would she? It was a silly church coddling celebrities with no influence or strings to anything that shaped the real world. Nothing that could touch her and her cynical friends.

She'd been so wrong.

And if Cat stopped to think now, she knew what she was doing was stupid. Even as she found an exploit and plastered Bl0om's obituary across the Church's website. Plastered the page with red blinking graffiti: _we know. murderers. we know._ She even grabbed a bit of the financials she'd stolen, proof of the Church's corruption which was only one small part of their sins, and pasted that in there too. Let the world know what these fakes were doing.

It would be gone in a couple hours, at most, her hack scrubbed from all but a few internet hiveminds. It wouldn't be enough. It would only serve to expose her more and piss them off. Cat just plain didn't care. In fact, Cat decided she wanted to do more.

She did have bank records, after all.

_Now who's suicidal?_ a detatched part of her mind thought.

And then she didn't think anymore. She tossed her common sense to pyre, wiped the snot from her face, and went to work.

\---

By the time Ota finished verifying the artwork from the heist, it was late, even by Baba's standards. It hadn't helped that Ota had uncorked a bottle of 50 year old scotch to celebrate the score, snagged at the last auction and worth every penny. By the time he got back to the Penthouse, stars were beginning to wink out into the lavender before dawn.

Baba knew Cat would already be asleep on the couch at this hour, and for some reason that thought only stoked the warm rolling happiness he had from the bourbon. Someone at home, waiting for him. Well, maybe not precisely _waiting,_ but ...there. He was careful to silence the latch on the door as he let himself in.

She wasn't on the couch when his eyes finally adjusted to the dim. The open laptop on the coffee table cast cool, blue shadows over a slumped head, sprawled arms. She'd fallen asleep on the floor in front of the laptop, working away. Even Cat usually managed to get to the couch.

"What to do..." Baba muttered fondly. He couldn't leave a lady sleeping folded over like that. Baba's spine practically creaked in sympathy. He padded his way over, slipped an arm around her shoulders and knees, and straightened to deposit her on the couch.

And then he caught a look at her face.

City light streamed in from the windows and lit up still-wet tracks of tears. Her cheeks were splotched and nose raw with crying. Even in sleep, her face was a grimace, twisted up with hurt.

It made Baba's heart clench. Any remaining warmth from the bourbon left him.

He hesitated in front of the couch. He wanted to wake her, force her to tell him who had made her cry, force her to smile, laugh at him, smirk at him, yell at him, anything to wipe that look from her face. But Baba knew that forcing Cat to do anything was like...well, herding cats. Very clever, slippery cats. With big hearts but sharp claws. And keyloggers.

That didn't mean he had to leave her alone.

Baba carried her quietly to his room and carefully--with the care reserved for artifacts and Van Goghs and irreplaceable treasures--settled Cat on the bed. The spare bed. The suite had come with two beds and since Ota had a tendency to fumigate his studio with art projects and end up crashing at Baba's, he'd never bothered to have one removed. He pulled a blanket over her and indulged in brushing a strand of hair, tangled with tears, away from her face.

He shucked off his own shirt and flopped on the opposite bed. He was just beginning to drift off when a sound drew his attention. A wet, grubby, snot-nosed sniffle. A thin hand fumbled, silhouetted by the city lights, and rubbed fiercely at her face. There was an audible breath, shattered and crumbling at the edges. Baba felt an invisible string pull taut in his chest.

"You awake, beautiful?" Baba whispered.

Another snuffle. "No." Cat's voice was froggy from crying.

"Fair enough." Baba turned on his side to face her. "How about this: are you alright?"

"...fine. I'm fine."

_I thought you were a better liar than that, princess,_ Baba thought with something like heartache. A _fine_ Cat would be cursing colorfully right about now after waking up in a strange bed. A _fine_ Cat would have said something cutting. He'd never seen a _fine_ Cat cry.

She made a sound, sighed through clenched teeth, a twisted thing somewhere between denial and grief . A whimper of air bit off at the end.

And that's when Baba broke. He got up and moved quietly.

"I'm coming over there, pretty lady. Try not to punch me."

The feather bed shifted silently as he eased himself down. He slid a hand in the dark until he found her shoulder and felt her muscles tense. He waited, not moving, until she slowly eased, then he drew an arm around her. He began rubbing careful circles on her back as he considered how to handle this new, fragile version of Cat that made his heart crack. Could not be smoothed over with banter and flirtations.

"Can you tell me what happened?"

Silence, a pause so long that Baba began to think she wasn't awake at all. Then: "A friend was...he died."

_Oh. Damn._ "I'm sorry, Cat. I--" But then Cat cut him off with a flat whisper.

"It was because of me."

Baba bit down on his words and considered the next carefully. "It had to do with what brought you here?"

"Yes."

"...would you like to talk about it?"

"...no." But then Cat seemed to think of something. She started, tension turned her from soft to steel beneath his hands as she tried to shove herself up. "Shit. I think I did something stupid. I really--"

"Shh. Just hush for once." Baba arrested her motion by tightening his arms around her. Cat tumbled back against his chest, her usual level of fight gone. That, more than anything, alarmed him more.

Baba softened his grip, but took the opportunity to resettle her, tucked her head under his chin. A wet cheek dampened his chest but he didn't mind. "Whatever it is, it can wait until morning. The world can wait until morning, princess. Then we'll face it. Sleep first. Then we will handle it."

The _we_ in his words made his throat catch as he realized he meant it. The need for a _we._ Not a pretty lady and gentleman thief, not a princess. This wasn't about making a beautiful woman smile anymore. In a short time, she'd weedled past it. And now...now. There wasn't much Baba could imagine _not_ being willing to do to keep this woman safe and close. This woman, by turns sour and strange, lying and loveable, fierce with her flaws. He'd begun to doubt he'd ever get her to believe it, let alone accept it, but that alone didn't matter. He wanted to do it anyway, simply because it was her.

It was a relief from his thoughts when she relented and sighed unsteadily. Her breath tumbled across his chest and made something hot sing in his gut. Steady, steady. Baba drew her closer and took a steadying breath of his own.

His fingers found the nape of her neck and then began carefully carding through her tangled hair. Delicately coaxing out the tangles from the surprisingly soft, perpetually tousled, not-quite-waves. It gave him something to focus on besides the warm way her body fit next to his. And he felt Cat relax by inches. A soft fist loosened and fingers spread hesitantly at his collar. Her breathing slowed, pool of grief stilling.

And in the quiet before the sun rose, Baba made a promise.

\----

Cat felt warmth, a steady heartbeat. And the smell of mint and skin. Those two associations alone were enough to bring her slowly out of a drifting, dreamless sleep. She made to rub her eyes, and that was when she realized the warmth was arms around her. She jolted her eyes open.

The warmth came from the planes of a very nicely muscled chest under her cheek. Cat vaguely registered that it matched the very nice bicep cradling her shoulder before she let out an alarmed gasp. She tilted her head up to see Baba studying her.

"Morning, pretty lady." Baba's face broke into that typical sunbeam smile, though there was something new softening up the edges. "Sleep well?"

"Baba! What..." Cat shoved herself upright and Baba's arms fell away. She tried not to notice how chilled it became where his warm hands drifted away. She twisted to look at him. Realized Baba was naked to where the blankets pooled around his waist. Well. Hello.

_...Why did this not ever happen to me before my life went to hell._ She intently studied this fascinating fact a good five seconds longer than was proper before looking away.

Cat distracted herself by recalling last night in pieces that made her stomach drop. Bloom. And the email. And hacking. And talking to Baba and then... "Oh. I fell asleep."

"That is generally what people do in a bed. Among other things." Baba winked and stretched languidly. Cat couldn't help but follow the roll of muscles with her eyes. When she looked up, a pleased smirk told her Baba had noticed.

Cat scowled out of habit and quickly got out of bed. "Thanks, but I would have been fine on th--" Cat looked around Baba's room for the first time. "Why do you have two beds in your room...? Wait, no. Don't answer that."

"Imagining something naughty about me already, princess? I like that." Baba got up. Cat wasn't sure whether she was disappointed or relieved that he was already wearing pants as he began to rifle through his closet for a shirt. "How's breakfast sound?"

"Uh, I guess..." Cat stopped. Remembered what she'd done last night. The website. The...financials. She winced to herself. "I...better pass. I got some things..."

"--That you can tell me about. Over breakfast. I'll listen to anything you want to share, pretty lady. And we can figure it out together before telling the others." Baba said it matter-of-factly and moved towards the door. "I'll go get it ordered while you relax."

He was gone before Cat could marshal an excuse.

\---

Baba found only Mamoru in the lounge, puffing industriously on a cigarette over his coffee.

"Seen the others yet?"

"Nah, Kisaki's shut up in his studio."

"Probably hungover." Baba remembered the art and bourbon which seemed much longer ago than last night. "Anyway. Keep your evening clear. I'm asking boss to call a meeting."

"Surely y'two didn't get enough for another auction already."

"No." Baba glanced back up the stairs before straightening his hat and picking up the phone. "I want to discuss the auction protocol."

The detective's brows crept up by inches. He paused and lowered the cigarette from his mouth. "Well that's...an interesting development. Eisuke's not going to like it."

Baba smiled."No skin off your nose, right Detective?"

"Hah. Whatever," Mamoru slouched down and returned studiously to his coffee and cigarettes. "I knew that kid would be a pain in the ass from the start."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I debated whether to move this scene later to get to a big action scene in the next chapter sooner, but decided it needed to stay. Because reasons. And repercussions. And Baba comfort-fluff is just like a big fuzzy fic blanket, I think? Maybe? I have no idea what I'm doing.
> 
> Also, because I hate fics that rely on it, this is probably the last chapter with a trigger warningy topic for a while. Thanks for hanging in there!


	11. Intruders and Option D

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An intruder in the penthouse catches everyone off guard and leaves Cat with no where to run. And Baba concludes this woman is trying to kill him.
> 
> Guest starring: Luke! Everyone's favorite collarbone-obsessed doctor.

"Just keep that two-factor authentication on, Ota. And watch how you back-up your phone photos. I will _not_ help you if you get caught up in the next celebrity nudes leak."

"If you're asking to see me naked, little mouse, all you need--"

" _Please_ don't finish that sentence." Cat firmly handed Ota back his phone.

"What fun is that?" Ota sulked prettily then smiled. "You know, I was skeptical at first but you're handy to have around. Maybe I should hire you."

Cat felt her stomach flip but one thought about Bl0om's death chased away any other thoughts. "I'm gone at the end of the month. Sorry."

"Shame." Ota shrugged."But you know, if you get bored with sleeping on Baba's couch, you can come stay with me."

"Oh?" Cat said blandly. "Is your couch comfier?"

"Of course. And more importantly, I know how to treat my pets."

Cat laughed. "Ota. You can call me all the nicknames you want, but it should be obvious that I would be a very, _very_ bad pet."

"Even better."

"...Yeah, that right there? That's why I'll stick with Baba."

"That does seem to be mutual." The artist seemed to eye her then smirked. "On second thought, offer rescinded. This will be more fun to watch."

"...this?" Cat echoed.

But the artist was already headed out of the lounge and towards the elevator.

"Hey! I'm serious about that two-factor!" Cat hollered after him.

"Be good, mousie!"

And with that, blissful silence. Cat sighed and flopped back into the couch before springing up again and heading to the kitchen. It was rare that she had the Penthouse all to herself, and the quiet was delicious. It had been several days since the night of Bl0om's death, and Baba had seemed to keep a closer eye on her than usual since then. Cat had ended up telling him about Bl0om and the email she'd received, but had avoided going into the specifics of the Church or what Cat had really done in retaliation.

So the quiet and the chance to work without interruption was a nice respite. Cat headed for the coffee maker and mulled over what she could accomplish on the info dump before the boys got back.

  
_The boys._ Cat rolled her eyes at her own thoughts. _When did I start thinking of these criminal idiots as my boys?_

\----

Cat emerged from the kitchen in time to hear the elevator doors ding. She glanced over just long enough to see a maid cart rattle across the threshold before she continued back to the couch.

"Hey, Emcie. How's it going? Let me know if I'm in your way."

Over the course of the last week, Cat had gotten to know the maid assigned to the Penthouse. Eisuke had particular requirements (of course, when did he not) and so it was the same quiet, wide-eyed girl that showed up each day around noon to dust, clean up, and resolutely ignore whatever strange goings-on the Penthouse had for her. Including a plain nerd girl in a hoodie who seemed to be living with the millionaire elites. And the heightened security of Soryu's Ice Dragon muscle who watched the VIP elevator from the lobby.

If it struck Emcie as curious, she never said so. It'd taken Cat several days to get the girl to return her greeting and learn her name, but now the maid occasionally could be coaxed into small talk. A refreshingly mundane relief from the penthouse boys and their eternal games.

So Cat only half noticed when the cart rattled to a stop by the elevator and the maid followed her into the lounge. Only gave it the sparsest of attention when someone reached for her phone stacked with a pile of books on the corner table.

"Oh, you can just leave that. I'm not done with--"

A glint of metal made Cat look up. And up. The woman in the maid uniform was tall, muscled like a cage fighter, and most definitely...

"You're...not Emcie." Cat breathed. Her eyes landed on a necklace around the woman's neck. A silver religious symbol in the shape of a smiling mask.

The Church of Friends mask.

"Oh. ...Oh no."

That was all she got before a boxcutter slid into the woman's hand. The blade slid out with a lick of metal on metal, and Cat flung her laptop up as not-Emcie lashed out.

It blocked the blade and Cat had just enough thought to swing it at the woman's face. It connected with her shoulder as the woman ducked, but the force sent the laptop skittering out of Cat's hands and across the floor.

Cat dove across the arm of the couch for her phone. An iron hand intercepted her wrist and flung her back. Cat barely avoided hitting her head on the coffee table. Instead, she slid under it, eliciting a dark curse from the woman with the blade, and scrambled to her feet on the other side.

"How did you--What'd you do to Emcie?"

It was a stupid question, so Cat wasn't surprised when her attacker didn't answer. The woman lurched over the coffee table, sending Cat skittering backwards, calculating. Not-Emcie had positioned herself between Cat and the elevator, and her phone went flying in the struggle.

"Come quietly and I won't have to hurt you." The woman moved again, shadowing Cat as she tried to dodge around the table.

"Really?" Cat's voice shook, but she allowed herself to pretend it was from rage rather than the cold fear pooling in her stomach. She was going to die. _After all this work,_ she was going to die. She kept talking in order to buy time to think. "That what you told Bloom, too? Before you killed him?"

No way to the elevator. Her phone was lost somewhere under the couch. She could make it to the kitchen but then what? Knife fight with a woman who had thirty pounds and probably years of actual combat advantage over her? No. That left the stairs and the suites on the landing above them.

Which would all likely be locked, except one.

A phone, the hotel phone in Baba's suite. Cat didn't even try to hide her intention. She just twisted and bolted for the stairs. She made it six steps before something slammed into the back of her knee.

Everything happened at once. The stairs rushed up. Something yanked her by the ankle. A flash of metal as Cat shielded herself.

This was the point, in any good story, any artful manga or hollywood production, where a knight would ride in. A valiant defender would leap between them, would have caught her mid-fall, and save the day. And the heroine could pretend she wasn't going to die like her friends, anonymous and gone.

It wasn't a good story. Cat wasn't a good heroine.

Cat was going to lose.

But that didn't mean she'd let them win.

The woman struck. If they really needed her alive, for some reason, Cat was going to oblige. She met the blade of the boxcutters with her arm. Cat felt her skin give against the blade with a lick of pain, leaving a hot line of blood up one forearm.

It also brought her into kicking distance. Cat flailed her legs, tangling them with the woman's, trying to remember every minute of her college freshman workshop on self-defense.

All, y'know, thirty minutes of it three years ago.

The woman grunted as she toppled. Cat scrambled to her feet, ignored the slick feeling of her own blood, and ran up the stairs.

Baba's suite was just how she'd left it. Cat threw the lock on the door behind her and pelted to put another door between them. She had to try twice to lock the bedroom door. Her left hand was turning tacky with blood and acting sluggish.

_Nerve damage? No, time for that later. Focus._

Cat threw a desperate look around Baba's bedroom and only had a moment to wonder, belatedly, why she'd run here rather than in the bathroom where she'd locked herself before. Cat saw a phone on the nightstand. She bolted, picked up the line, and nearly cried when she heard a dial tone.

She slammed on the button for security. She'd just heard a bored operator pick up when a crash came from the next room. She dropped the phone and looked for something to barricade behind.

The door was not going to hold. The increased sounds from the living room seemed to come from far away as Cat stood in the middle of the room, evaluating her options in the space of one ragged breath.

Option A, a surprise attack: try to shove past her attacker when the door opened. Unlikely to succeed. Option B: stand and fight. Even more unlikely. Option C: hide in the closet. Just delaying the inevitable, and Cat hated the idea of being dragged like a rat out of hiding. She didn't want to hide. She wanted to escape.

So Option D: escape.

Her eyes fled to the window. Option D was not a good one, but her life had been a series of Option D lately. It was a penthouse. They were fifty stories up. Cat was uncoordinated, injured, and quite possibly insane. Because she considered it.

She briefly considered the alternative. Of being killed here. Her mind flashed on the thought, Baba discovering her body in his own suite, and her heart shied away with a surprising ache.

Or worse, being captured, drug off somewhere to only turn up as an inexplicable suicide or accident like Bloom and the rest. Cat could deal with disappearing on them, but she couldn't put her family through that.

So option D.

And then she ripped open the curtains and hunted for the emergency release. Maybe there would be a ledge. Or a balcony she could reach. Another open window. A way to the roof above her. _Something._

The window pane released with a loud crack and howl of rushing wind that ripped the curtains past her. Cat gripped the sill with trembling hands as she leaned out. No ledge--damn Eisuke and his flair for modern architecture. No open windows this high up, but she could see the small balcony of a premium suite vaguely below her. Three floors down.

Three floors. That...that was survivable, right? If she didn't miss? Surely she'd heard of people surviving bigger distances than that.

_...Or was that just cats and bouncy toddlers?_

_Oh god._ Her heart was shuddering too fast to even think straight.

And then a thunderous crash behind her made the decision for her.

Cat's grip tightened and she brought a foot up to the sill. She tried to make her hands let go of the frame, but terror seemed to have hijacked her grip. More violent noises behind her, undecipherable over the noise of the wind whipping around her.

A whimper shook her chest. She had to, she _had to_. She rocked her body forward--

Something grabbed at her collar. An arm snaked around her shoulders, clamped down and ripped Cat backwards into the room.

She'd hesitated too long.

Panic became a very attractive option.

"Get off me!" Cat squeezed her eyes shut and scrambled against the arms that grabbed her. Kick, scratch, bite, anything. She heard a yelp of pain and was pinned to the wall with a jolt.

"Easy, Cat! _Kat._ "

It was the last word that sliced through her. Not said like a word, but a promise, a name. A real person. Not a nickname. Not an alias. Her name. Cat shot open her eyes.

Baba stood over her, looking drawn as a ghost and twice as pale. He had her arms pinned to the wall, but relaxed his hold as Cat stopped resisting. Over his shoulder, Soryu standing in the doorway like a stormcloud, gun out and pointed to the crumpled form of her attacker on the floor.

Cat felt dizzy from adrenaline. A hand touched her cheek. Baba's eyes were dark with concern but softened as she met his gaze.

Baba swallowed hard, and his voice was husky. Unusually ineloquent. "...Hey."

"Baba..." Adrenaline died and ceased to buffer her thoughts. The enormity of the moment caught up with her. And all the preceding moments before. What had just happened. What she'd almost done.

Cat felt something crumble in her chest. Her eyes burned. She flung herself at Baba's chest as her knees gave.

\----

She was trying to kill him. This woman was trying to _god damn kill him._

It was the only conclusion Baba could come to. He tightened his arms around her shivering shoulders. Or rather, shoulders which were clearly doing their level best to _not_ shiver and failing. Baba could feel her heart slamming through her thin shirt. It matched his own. Both of them gripping each other in the middle of a trashed suite, catching their breath as wind whipping out a window that had nearly taken Cat out with it.

_Christ._ Cat, who a moment before had been prepared to fling herself out a _fifty-second-story window.._.

Granted, Baba had done crazier things than that. But he was a thief. He was trained and experienced and expendable. He wasn't...he wasn't _Cat._ Their hacker. His Cat. Cat, terrified and fierce and desperate, as if they'd failed, as if she didn't realize...well, a lot of things. A lot of things he hadn't found the words for yet.

And it was the lot of things that made a painful twist in his chest as he buried his face in her hair. Breathed in her scent, breathed out the what-ifs.

If he hadn't been on his way in with Soryu. If Security hadn't already alerted the guards that a call came from the Penthouse. If they'd been a minute later, or Baba had been seconds slower. If--

"Luke's on his way." Soryu cut in and Baba jolted back to reality. He finally took note of the blood that was seeping into his shirt where Cat gripped him. Baba leaned over it with alarm.

"Oh, shit. Sorry." Cat's voice still wasn't steady but she pulled back as she realized what he was looking at.

Baba arrested her movement with a hand. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

"I don't think so, no." Cat was suddenly alarmed. "Wait, did she get my laptop?"

"...that's what you're worried about." Soryu deadpanned. Then he shrugged. "We have it. She won't be getting anything but an interrogation. It looked damaged, however."

"Well...I kinda...hit her with it."

"...of course you did," Soryu snorted.

Baba let out a surprised laugh and felt a little of his panic seep away. He supposed if she was worrying about her electronics, that was a good sign. "That's my girl."

Cat made a weakly disgruntled sound at that.

Baba patted her on the head and guided her out of the bedroom. The suite living space was already a buzz with Ice Dragon enforcers shifting in and out with reports for Soryu. The intruder had, of course, already been removed. Baba studied Cat's injured arm and idly decided to ensure that whatever hole Soryu threw her in would be especially dark and painful.

He guided Cat towards a seat. She moved mechanically. Baba kept on talking to keep her focused.

"Did she say anything, princess?"

Cat shook her head. "Just to go with her. I...declined."

"You are a tough one to win over. Glad to see it's not just me."

"Yeah, well...she didn't even cook me oyakodon." Cat probed at her arm with a wince.

"Here, press this." Baba handed her a clean towel.

"Thanks..." Cat took a deep breath and her gaze seemed to clear up a bit. Her eyes landed on the smashed door and blood spots on the carpet. "I'm...sorry for involving you in all this. All of you."

"That's usually my line." Baba faked a care-free smile for her. "You do realize the ridiculousness of apologizing to a mob leader and a thief for trouble? This is a slow Tuesday for us."

Slow Tuesdays didn't normally terrify Baba this much, but he declined to mention that.

"Well. Glad I picked my criminal associations well," Cat grumbled.

"Oh, is that all we are?"

"...jury's still out." Cat answered begrudgingly, but Baba couldn't help but grin like it was the highest compliment.

Soryu stepped back into the suite with Luke in tow. Eisuke's doctor friend looked just as pale and distracted as always. Baba waved him over and Luke fairly floated over the broken debris without the slightest interest.

"Luke is going to stitch up that arm, pretty lady."

Luke finally seemed to notice Cat and set his kit down as he peered into her face with a bit too much keen interest for Baba's liking. "Oh. What fine bone structure."

"Uh...2. Because that's creepy." Cat leaned away from his scrutiny with a skeptical glance towards Baba. "This guy's a doctor?"

"The best. Friend of Eisuke and Soryu's." Baba reassured as he silently thwacked Luke on the shoulder and redirected his attention to Cat's bleeding arm.

"Of course he is." Cat grudgingly allowed Luke to peel back the towel. She winced. "What is it about weirdos with too much money around here."

"Hazard of the auctions," Baba winked and stood. Soryu was waiting for him by the door. "I'll be back, princess."

"I'll be here--Ow! Motherf--" Cat flinched as Luke began dosing her arm with antiseptic and mostly managed to bite off a string of colorful curses.

"Has anyone told you that you have perfectly formed collarbones?" Luke's delighted voice drifted out as Baba closed the door. He rolled his eyes and followed Soryu.

\---

Baba waited until they entered the lounge to slide his eyes accusingly at Soryu. "So. Which of your geniuses were on guard duty today?"

The mobster just grunted. "They obviously fucked up not checking the maid. I'll take care of it."

"That's such a comfort, seeing as how you _took care_ of her security up to this point _so well_."

"Are we going to have a problem, thief?"

"We already have a _problem._ Your men were supposed to keep her _safe--"_

_"_ Baba." Soryu said his name like a warning. "Your _'Lupin'_ is slipping."

Baba came up short, took a hard, measured breath. He reached for and reassembled an easy smile with a not-so-easy amount of effort. His nerves were like a spring wound too tight. He forced his shoulders to relax and gave Soryu a terse nod.

Soryu watched all this with lidded eyes. His hand eased back from where it had strayed to the gun under his jacket and shrugged. "I've seen you with a lot of women. None that effect you like that."

"Most women aren't trying to drive me to an early grave," Baba muttered dryly. "We need to get ahead of this."

Soryu gave a short nod. "The penthouse isn't safe for the time being. After Luke stitches her up we're moving her to Ice Dragon headquarters."

Baba fought the impulse to argue. Soryu was right, obviously someone knew how to get to Cat here and they were savvy enough to use the hotel's operations to do it. But the idea of Cat and her eternal clutter of hoodies and gadgets vacating his suite left him startlingly despondent. He felt Soryu's eyes on him as he shoved his hands in his pockets and nodded dully.

"And once she's there," Soryu continued and gave him a level look as he dialed up a car. "We need to get some answers. Real ones, this time. No more playing around."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had so much fun slipping a Luke cameo in here. Hopefully he's not too OOC because I haven't had a chance to play his story yet. And I hope someone appreciated my really stupid MC/Emcie joke that I COULD NOT RESIST SLIPPING IN.
> 
> Next chapter: confessions and revelations and living with mobsters.


	12. I Missed Something

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cat comes clean with the bidders and realizes she doesn't know as much as she thought.

Soryu's office pretty much matched Cat's vision of a mobster at work. Big, forboding, impressive. Perhaps a bit more conservative and nicely appointed than she'd expected, and the presence of a wall full of book shelves pinged her interest. Anyone who kept that many books around went up slightly in Cat's literary student estimation. She made a note to stealthily peruse titles if she had a chance. 

But a dark glare from the owner brought Cat back from studying her surroundings. Soryu leaned on the edge of his desk, arms crossed as he stared at her expectantly. The others were there, convening quickly after the attack at the Penthouse. Ota and Mamoru fighting for room on a small couch while Baba leaned against a wall by the door, just at the edge of her sight. He was smiling but obviously uneasy, which made Cat uneasy.She wondered when she'd started borrowing her cues from him.

Eisuke came in last and took up a seat opposite Soryu. He glanced briefly at the bandage on Cat's arm and pursed his lips, as if she got injured merely as a personal inconvenience to him. Cat resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

“The intruder?” Eisuke asked Soryu.

“Not talking. Yet,” Soryu said, not veering his glare from Cat, “But I think it's time _you_ gave us some answers."

The auction sponsors all turned expectantly. Mamoru was even awake and looking interested. It was time.

Cat drew a slow breath. She was feeling better, after getting stitched up by the strange doctor with an even stranger preoccupation with her bone structure. Soryu had introduced her to a rather puppy-like young Ice Dragon named Inui who'd immediately brought her some calming tea. But her hands still wanted to shake a little if she didn't grasp the mug tight enough. Her head felt empty, still on the ledge of a tall building. But maybe that would help with the story she had to tell.

So she leapt. She started talking.

About her friends, her and Bl0om and the rest. How they'd been simply another bored chat group of script kiddies and nerds scattered around Japan until a couple months ago. When a strange callsign popped up in their chat and dropped a tip on an exposed server for the Church of Friends. 

That wasn't super unusual in itself. People who spent their free time poking at digital bears like Cat did were a tight community, and it was common for a tip to make it's rounds until it found a home. Only thing that was unusual was someone would bother to expose a ridiculous org like the celebrity church in the first place. 

_Hack the woo. She’d been an idiot._

How Cat had volunteered, bored and snarky. She laughed it off with the others as she made a run at it. A smash and grab. Copied everything. How she'd shared a copy of the dump with the rest and thought they'd have a good laugh going over it on the weekend.

How quiet the channel fell when they started digging in.

"And you found...?" Eisuke prompted impatiently.

"Financials and donations moved around in shifty ways, corrupt but not too surprising. But then it got creepy. Things with code names. Emails back and forth between church officials about how to win a famous celebrity over. How to infiltrate a circle of friends in Hollywood or how this CEO was doing with his marriage and if the skeptical wife could be driven off. Then it got...weirder. Private detectives following politicians around and deals in the governments of a dozen different countries.” 

Cat was quiet for a long moment. "We thought we were hacking with a woo-woo cult. But from the inside it looked more like the mob with religion--"

"Erh..." She bit her words off and glanced sheepishly at Soryu. 

"That's an insult to the mob.” It was the first time Cat had heard Soryu make a joke and her eyes widened, but he prompted her to go on.

"Anyway…It was weird enough that we stopped digging after that. But a week after the hack, one of us, Sarai, started saying she was receiving strange phone calls. All times of the night. Wondered if someone was reading her email. Cars outside her house. She got creeped out. She reported it to the police but of course nothing happened."

Mamoru snorted on his cigarette.

"And then she just...disappeared. No one knew how to reach her. We were about to try to contact her parents when she reappeared back in the chat room almost a week later. But...different. She wasn't talking like Sarai. It was her username and secure ID, access only Sarai can have, but...it wasn't her."

Ota looked impressed. "You can tell that from chat?"

"Everyone types differently,” Cat said. “You get to know people. Sarai never used punctuation and this person was typing so formal... It wasn't Sarai. And then...couple days later Bl0om tracked down a news article about a car accident. She was killed. The news put the death at two hours before she logged back in.”

“Not-Sarai kept emailing us. We disbanded the chat after that." Cat studied her hands. “We all got spooked. I thought that would be the end of it. But then...I noticed a car following me after class. I put what I could in a backpack the next day and didn't come back. It felt like a huge, paranoid over-reaction at the time."

"Probably why you're still alive," Soryu said. 

Cat shrugged. “Well, you know the rest. I thought I’d disappeared pretty good until the thing with Bl0om.”

“You think he told them where to find you?”

“Uh, no. I didn’t keep in touch with anyone when I left. That was the plan.” _Well, except Takkun but hell if I’m going to mention him._ Cat studied her nails. “It was probably the financials that tipped them off.”

“Wait, what?” Baba asked the question on all the men’s faces. “What financials?”

“When Bl0om….well. That night I found out. I defaced their website, to start,” Cat said slowly. She’d told Baba that much. “And then….well. It didn’t seem like enough for what they’d done. I had the information on several bank accounts so…”

Mamoru squinted. “You stole from a Church?”

“A crooked church?” Soryu added.

“They’re not a real church!” Cat protested. “And I didn’t take everything. I don’t touch those Swiss or Caymans accounts with a ten foot pole—I’m not stupid. Just…moved around some of the local funds. Some local charities got very nice anonymous donations and…” 

Cat’s protests trailed off under the stoney looks that had formed. “I get it. It was stupid to antagonize them. I was…upset, ok?”

“I thought upset women just shopped and ate ice cream,” Ota mused.

“Oh whatever. You don’t know enough women, then,” Cat said sullenly.

“It was beyond stupid,” Soryu pronounced. Then the mobster frowned. "But we have a bigger problem."

"Yes we do,” Eisuke said, displeased.

Cat blinked. "Bigger?"

”What you’re describing doesn’t make sense. — Ota. Someone digs up some scandal material on you. What's your manager do?"

The artist shrugged, still half playing with his phone. "Buy them off. Easy."

Soryu nodded, picking up the thread. "And Eisuke, someone threatens to expose your political secrets?”

"Ruin them. Discredit them and their own financials." Eisuke gave a malicious smirk towards Cat. "Or make them a useful tool, of course."

"Even the yakuza wouldn't go to the bother of hunting down and eliminating a few students for some embarrassing emails. That only happens in Hollywood." Soryu stared down Cat. "So financials aside, they were trying to kill you before that. Either you're lying to us about what you found—lying _again_ I might add—or..."

"--or I missed something. It wasn’t the emails.” Cat's head jerked up, mouth dropped as she followed it to the logical conclusion. "Oh my god, I missed something. There's something else in the dump."

Eisuke nodded. "Something worth killing for."

\----

After that, the arrangements were about as bad as Cat was expecting—she’d be confined to the Ice Dragons’ headquarters until they could figure out a better plan. She would be sleeping in a secured room in the basement and have Soryu’s men around her around the clock. Her sole job would be simple: figure out what she’d missed in the dump, what the Church really wanted. 

And that meant no penthouse, no windows even. And no prison breaks with Baba.

_Stop with the disappointment. He’s probably relieved to have his suite back._

Cat continued to internally scold herself as the men drifted out. She didn’t miss that Baba gave her a displeased look as he exited. He’d been quiet ever since she came clean, and that bothered her more than any draconian security measures.

When she was alone in Soryu’s office, she waited until he’d finished sending off the last of the men and turned to her with a perturbed look. “What now?”

Cat drew up straight. “I want women.”

The mobster didn’t react to much, but he rewarded her with a very slow blink. “Women.”

“I want women guards. Whoever you put to watch the front doors or whatever. Surely the Ice Dragons have women in their ranks, right?”

“Of course we do,” Soryu grumbled as he turned back to his desk. “But you’re in no position to make demands of my men—“

“I’m in _every_ position to make demands, especially if those demands keeps me alive! That was the deal, wasn’t it?!” 

Cat realized she was _yelling at a mob boss_ loud enough for any number of twitchy men with guns to hear her in the hallway. She took a slow breath. 

“What I mean is I want women guards, and so should you,” she said. “The people after me are smart and knew they could slap a maid uniform on a mercenary with biceps the size of my thigh and get away with it. We should both want women guards who _won’t_ take one look at a skirt or a pair of tits and mentally code it as ‘ _harmless’_ because that’s the kind of gendered bullshit that nearly killed me today.”

“…Bad as the thief,” Soryu muttered.

Cat blinked. “What?”

“Nevermind. Are you done?” Soryu’s voice was cold and flat. 

“…Maybe?”

“I’m not in the business of allowing outsiders to disrespect the Ice Dragons and get away with it.” Soryu said and Cat’s stomach dropped. “But I’m also not in the business of punishing those point out a vulnerability. You have a point. I’ll look at the guards.”

Cat let go of a breath that she didn’t know she’d been holding. “I…Thanks.”

“But you agree to stay out of the way and not pull any more stunts. Inui is still going to be looking after you. I don’t have the time.”

“Right. That’s fine. He’s…enthusiastic.”

Soryu’s lips twitched into an unfamiliar smile. “Yes, yes he is. Now get out of here.”

“Sure, sure. Oh,” Cat stopped by the door as she caught sight of the bookcase again. “By the way, if I’m going to be stuck here, can I borrow a book?”

Soryu looked distinctly sheepish as she turned and discovered the criminal leader of the Ice Dragons harbored a secret love of detective pulp fiction.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In another world, I imagine Cat and Soryu totally bonding about being bookworm dorks. 
> 
> Coming in the next chapter: Peaches! Sass! Fluff! Smooches! Juggling!


	13. Peaches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baba confronts Cat about her trust issues in the most Baba-way possible. Fruit and juggling is involved. And something new grows between the thief and the hacker.

Baba loitered in the hallway of Ice Dragon headquarters. Or rather, he brooded in the hallway. With a bag full of peaches. The peaches were an important part of the plan. He tossed a couple at Cat the moment she emerged from Soryu’s office.

“What the hell?” A peach rebounded off Cat’s shoulder but she managed to scoop them to her chest. 

Baba didn’t answer, just inclined his head with a sharp smile and strode off towards the stairwell at the far end of the hallway. He heard her hesitate before sneakered feet jogged after him. 

Cat stopped short as they reached the landing for the roof. “I’m not supposed to leave the building.”

Baba slung open the door, still not looking back at her. “Oh, is that so? Then just toss those peaches over here and go inside then, pretty lady. I can handle this on my own. Nothing to worry your head about.”

“But what are you…” Cat trailed off as Baba opened the bag and began filling his arms with peaches from the bag. He flicked his wrist and peaches began tumbling through the air. He kept up all of it juggled in one hand as he reached into his pocket and added a paring knife to the routine. Baba occupied both hands with juggling half a dozen peaches and one very sharp knife as he sauntered across the rooftop.

Cat found the door closing behind her as she followed, brow furrowed. “What antics are you up to now, Baba?”

“Up to?” Baba gave her an innocent blink. “Why, I’m just juggling peaches.”

“You don’t _just_ do anything.” The blade flickered through his hands and Cat couldn’t help but flinch. “And there’s a knife in there too.”

“Is there? That makes sense. I need a knife to cut the peaches.”

“Why not just let me hold it for you then and—Jesus, quit fooling arou—get down from there!”

Her voice went tight. Perhaps because Baba had, quite casually, raised one knee and mounted the railing that lined the rooftop. He balanced there a moment, silhouetted by the city lights, before dropping down to the narrow ledge on the far side. Peaches maintained their orbits with only a mild bobble.

He focused on his juggling as he heard Cat pound across the tarmac roof. It really was a lovely night. Baba couldn’t resist peeking at Cat out of the corner of his eye as he balanced. Moonlight hit her face and painted her black hair in silver. Her eyes were dark and angry, but Baba relished the way that brought out the flecks of gold in the dark brown. 

She always turned silver and gold when she was angry. No thief could resist that.

Which was why he needed her to realize what she was doing.

“What are you _doing_?” Cat seemed to echo his thoughts as she stopped on the other side of the railing. “What, are you training for the circus? Get over here before you fall.”

“Don’t worry yourself, beautiful. Ledge was the only place to go, really. But I am very good at what I do,” Baba flashed her a bright smile.

“Could you at least hand me the knife?”

“What knife?” Baba said again. “You just stand there and watch. These peaches won’t even get a bruise.”

He slid his feet along the ledge as he spoke, twisting as his body swayed in order to keep the objects in the air steady.

“I’m not worried about the _fruit,_ you idiot man!” Cat lunged as Baba made an exaggerated bobble. Her hands gripped his jacket lapels tightly and Baba smoothly adjusted the peaches to two separate one handed juggles. With the knife throwing off his rhythm in one hand it wasn’t a simple feat, but Baba managed. Though it made it hard to appreciate as she dragged him to her. 

Baba tilted his head down to smile at her panicked face. “So what _are_ you worried about, my lady?”

He watched her freeze, mouth working for a stutter. He savored the way a vulnerable hesitation cracked her anger, coloring her cheeks and making her lips twitch, even as he expected the evasions that came next.

“I’m not—erh, nothing. I just don’t want to have to explain how you ended up smeared across the pavement.”

_You’re getting worse at that, sweetheart,_ Baba gave an inward sigh, but Cat rallied, as she always did.

“Look. I know you’re trying to prove a point. I get it; I made things harder by not telling you what I was doing. You’re mad and I’m sorry.” She met his gaze firmly, not letting go of his collar. “So just put the fruit down and get down from there—“

This close, feeling her soft breath on his collar, Baba wanted more than anything to drop everything and take her in his arms. But that would not do. 

Not yet.

“Did it ever even occur to you to trust me, princess?” Baba said quietly.

“I…I do trust you. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Cat appeared to study the railing between them very, very hard. Her fingers clenched on his chest as the wind tugged at them both.

“Well, my mistake then,” Baba drawled and increased the arc of the juggling.

“Oh come on. It wasn’t that simple. Baba—“

“It is that simple, and I intend to convince you of that. Just do my a favor, my pretty lady. Next time it’s a close choice between jumping to your death and asking for help, give me all due consideration.” 

“What, you expect me to just sit on my hands and hope someone else comes along to save me?”

“I’m not asking you to stop saving yourself. That would be like asking the stars to stop shining, princess.” The corner of Baba’s lips curved into a soft smile. “I’m just asking you to remember one thing.”

Cat gave him a skeptical look. “And what’s that?”

“That I’m your thief.”

Cat’s smile turned confused. “What?”

Baba held her gaze placidly. “Your thief. And as your thief, I’ll always come to steal you away. No matter where you run, where you hide, or who has you cornered. Win or fail, fly or fall, I’m going to always be the one to steal you back.” 

And there her face cracked again. The expressions this woman made. Baba never tired of watching the rapidfire way they transformed her face. Her eyes froze wide. A heart-breaking smile took over her lips before she seemed to catch it and tuck it away again. Cat swallowed hard. “I…Jesus, Baba. You can’t just… What do you expect me to say to something like that?”

He’d half expected a scoff and unfair score, but Baba wasn’t about to say that. He adjusted his movements so he could lean forward, over the railing. Closing the distance until they were breaths away.

“Say you’ll let me.”

_Say you’ll let me. Say you want me. Say you’ll stay, because I’m not certain I’m a good enough man to let you go when all this is over._ Baba bundled those words up in his eyes so they wouldn’t escape his lips. He held his breath as she felt silent and still.

He was already asking for a lot, even if he greedily wanted more. And the biggest ask was perhaps asking Cat to believe that he meant every word. He didn’t miss her doubt in her eyes as she tossed out score after score for his ‘lines.’

But these weren’t lines. Demands, promises, were not his usual lines. Compliments and invitations and sweetness, yes. But nothing that lasted longer than a smile. The women he entertained never stayed, and he never asked them to. His work was complicated. Hearts were _very_ complicated, as Baba had learned in the past. But he had always found enough happiness in cheering up the time they had, brightening their day, happiness for now. It had started that way, with Cat.

But _for now_ with Cat was never going to be enough. 

If he could make her believe him, convince her it was that simple. He could be that simple, _they_ could be that simple, even with both their occupations and secrets and schemes… Baba dearly wanted to see what that could be. It was new to him, too and yet—

And then Cat’s lips brushed his and his thoughts stopped.

It was fleeting, a peck. A ghost of warmth where she leaned up and pressed her lips just to the corner of his mouth. And it was enough to spike every worry out of Baba’s head. 

He was distantly aware of the sound of fruit hitting the ground one after another as his hands faltered, though he had just enough sense to snag the paring knife out of the air before it could graze Cat’s shoulder. The smell of burst peaches filled the air and Baba knew it was his new favorite scent.

And in the next second she pulled back. He had just a moment to admire the fragile smile that reached her eyes before she seemed to realize what she’d done. Her eyes widened. She tensed and turned, heading to the roof stairwell.

_Oh no you don’t. I invented that move._

Baba vaulted the railing and snagged her shoulder. He swept her up and deposited her to sit on a the box of a raised vent before she had time to flail. 

It brought them to eye level and Baba had to fight to temper the bubbling grin on his face least he look like an idiot. He firmly placed a hand to either side of her on the vent and grinned into her startled eyes.

“Don’t you owe me a score, pretty lady?”

“A score?” Cat repeated faintly. Her knuckles were white on her knees. “Oh. Right. Fine. …8.”

_You would not have kissed me for an eight, cruel woman._

Baba just smiled. “Was that an eight for what I said or the kiss?”

“Kiss?” Cat scoffed nervously. “I didn’t—That was hardly a kiss. Please. You just looked so…”

Baba leaned forward. “Ah, I see. So what you’re saying is you need a _real_ kiss to judge. Fair enough. I can do better.”

He hesitated just a moment. Giving her the chance, to grumble or roll her eyes or shrug him off as she’d done a hundred times before. 

But all she did was breath his name, in a way that sent a shock into his chest.

“Baba…”

He caught her lips with his own, and it was soft and warm and infinite. He’d intended a quick kiss, firm but simple, unassuming, asking nothing. But then he felt her breath catch, and Baba utterly failed at asking nothing. 

He felt her mouth first tighten then relax, unwinding against his, and something in his head ignited. Her hand was in his hair and his fingers wrapped around the curve of her waist. Cat’s teeth caught his bottom lip and a hum started in deep in his chest. 

They stayed like that, for too long and not nearly long enough. And when they parted they both lingered, wordless as they looked at each other with dazed, hard breaths. Cat’s hand only left his chest when they heard steps on the stairwell.

It was only after Cat was halfway across the roof, meeting a nervous Inui with reassurances—that yes, she was fine, and yes, she’d return to the safety of the inside, no she didn’t need more tea—that Baba realized he’d never gotten his score.

That was alright by him. He fully intended to indulge in that, again and again, until one of them stopped running away and the world stayed as warm and bright as the new star in his chest.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was such an interesting character challenge because I felt like Baba would be /upset/ about Cat's dangerous lying and avoidance, but we don't often get to see Baba angry in the game so how would that go down in a way that's true to Baba?
> 
> My answer: juggling and gentle points made and promises and kissing. Yay kissing.
> 
> Next chapter: Cat rescues mobsters!


	14. Parameters Unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Ice Dragons go missing in rival territory, Cat lends Soryu a hand and learns exactly what the Auction Protocol might mean for her relationship with a certain thief.

Being a programmer, Cat liked to equate planning to if/then statements. For most of her life, it had worked out surprisingly well. Even after things went to hell. Example:

If: unknown entities kill a friend  
Then: run away from home  
If: a religious org is now trying to kill you  
Then: find a group of criminals, liars, and thieves to protect you  
If: that fails and someone traps you in a penthouse  
Then: leap out a window

 Say what you will about Cat’s logic, but the structure was sound. However at some point it began to break down.

If: the biggest thief and liar of them all hits on you  
Then: evasive maneuvers, girl

If: the thief is handsome  
If: the thief is kind  
If: the thief is funny  
If: the thief helps children and saves your life and wipes your tears and has eyes like bourbon and hair like caramel and a smile that makes you feel safe in the ridiculous hurricane of murder and conspiracy and bad days that has become your life  
If: the thief stops being just a thief  
If: the thief kisses you  
If: you kiss the thief back  
If: you really could get used to that  
If: you’ve only got a week left before you become someone else  
Then: …  
Then: …

_Then: parameters unknown. So fucking unknown._

 

Cat slammed down the laptop lid and sighed heavily. She’d been staring at the new identity materials her contact was preparing. He’d asked if there was a specific name she’d wanted to use.

With the money from the auction, Cat would have enough for the full new identity suite: government ID, work history, tax number, even a list of fake references and store loyalty cards going years back. Once her month was up, she could get on the train as Katsuko and get off it as no one special. Get off it in some backwater town with crappy internet and even crappier politics, someplace where the Church would have absolutely no reason to look for a young, skilled hacker under an assumed name.

A place where a young, skilled hacker would be miserable. 

Her contact said he could set her up with a background in retail. Nothing special. But maybe crappy-town would have a bookstore.

Nothing flashy like the Tres Spades. Nothing challenging like confounding Ichinomiya Group infrastructure. Nothing fun like sneaking around a museum with a thief.

But maybe there’d be a bookstore.

Cat reminded herself it would only be for a few years while she settled into a new life, got used to a new name and the Church forgot about Katsuko. Tokyo forgot about Katsuko. Her family grieved and buried Katsuko. And Baba would forget about a girl named Cat.

Agh. There was that twisty lump in her throat again. _Godammit._

“What’d the thief do this time?”

Cat twisted in her chair. Soryu stood in the doorway, coat still in hand. He’d been out with his lieutenants all morning—rival matters, Inui had whispered—but must have returned to pass through the lounge while Cat was brooding.

“What?” Cat turned back to her computer and rubbed the heat out of her eyes.

“You’ve been acting strange since you came to headquarters. Stranger than normal,” Soryu said. “Not that it’s my concern, but obviously the thief did something stupid to upset you.”

“Oh,” Cat squinted at her hands. “No, Baba didn’t do anything.”

“Suit yourself,” Soryu shrugged.

“It won’t effect my work. Assuming you ever give me any, that is.” 

“I would, if your boss would let me.”

Cat turned away from her laptop at that. “My boss? You mean…what, Eisuke?”

“Of course not. I meant…” Soryu paused, a neutral expression turning his cold features even more chill. “He didn’t tell you.”

“Who didn’t tell me what?”

“Ask your thief.”

One of Soryu’s men, Samejima, burst through the door and made a beeline for his boss. He whispered an update in Soryu’s ear. 

The mob boss twitched his cheek, which Cat had learned was the equivalent of shock and alarm in a normal person. They quickly strode to the far end of the room and began conferring with a number of Ice Dragons who had streamed in from the garage, looking rather harried. They were out of Cat’s earshot, but judging from the alarm rippling through the group, whatever the news was it wasn’t good.

Inui’s familiar face popped around the crowd. He had yet another fresh pot of tea and cookies in his hands. Cat had chatted with the young Ice Dragon on the day she’d arrived and complimented him on his tea. What had seemed like a basic act of conversation to Cat had evidently made a far bigger impression on the kind, eager young gang member. Now Inui seemed determined to work through the Ice Dragons’ entire supply of darjeeling during Cat’s stay.

Inui hesitated near the group. A stricken expression grew on his face as he listened in then quickly continued on his way towards Cat.

“What’s all that about?” Cat asked as Inui set down the pot.

“Some of our men went missing in rival territory,” Inui said quietly. “They were supposed to be meeting a contact but now it looks like it was a trap. Leader will have to decide whether to risk sending more men looking for them or wait for negotiations.”

“I’m guessing those negotiations usually don’t end up with everyone hugging it out.”

“Not usually,” Inui paled before evidently deciding it was not an appropriate subject for a lady. He smiled weakly at Cat. “But Leader always knows what to do, and nothing gets past him. Nothing for you to be worried about, Miss.”

Being caught up in a mob war actually rated as only a minor blip on Cat’s radar, really, but she allowed Inui to pass her a cup of tea and empty promises. She wondered briefly if there’d ever be a day when a term paper deadline and over-due library books were her worst stressors again. 

The men appeared to be planning something. A map came out on the table and voices got louder. The concern lines in Inui’s young face deepened. 

It was probably a karmic crime to see a puppy like Inui worried. Cat wrestled with her conscience for a long moment then grudgingly raised her voice. "Did your men have cellphones on them?"

Everyone but Inui seemed to have forgotten her presence. Half a dozen heads twisted around to glare at Cat, but she looked calmly to Soryu. "Did they have phones on them when they went missing?"

"Yes. Obviously. We've been trying to reach them for half an hour," one of Soryu's lieutenants snapped. The rest of the men sent her dismissive scowls and started to turn away.

Soryu, however, regarded Cat with new interest. "Could you find them?"

Even after all the time Cat had spent around headquarters, the interest of the leader of the Ice Dragons was not precisely a comforting thing. But: hacking. This was a thing she could do. A thing she could practically solve, unlike the problems that had chased her thoughts all morning.

She nodded once. "Maybe. I'll need information and time."

"You can get one of the two. We have perhaps an hour.” 

"That's not how requirements work," Cat muttered but she flipped open her laptop anyway. "I need names, numbers, and what cell provider you're using."

None of the men moved. Cat sighed and snatched Inui's phone off the end table before he could protest. Flipped it open with a groan. "Volt Cellular. You would be using them."

“That’s a problem?" Soryu asked, which seemed to send the rest of his men into motion. They deposited their phones on the table in front of Cat. 

A quick glance said they all used Volt services. Cat cursed under her breath as she began clacking at her keyboard.

"They're not one of the big carriers--which is why I suspect you use them--but it also means there's probably not an existing backdoor I can borrow from a friend."

Soryu looked sour. ”I thought nothing was safe from the likes of you."

"I didn't say I _couldn't_ get in," Cat said patiently. "It would just take too much time. Unless your guys can hang tight for a few hours while I tackle major infrastructure intrusions?” 

The worried looks indicated that was a negative. Cat went back to work. "Quick, was one of your missingguys a family man? Wife, kids?"

Silence.

No, of course, the life of a low level Ice Dragon probably didn't lend itself to visions of a quiet, domestic life. Cat sighed and brought up the cellular provider's website. "Fine. Who was the youngest?"

"Ayato." Inui spoke up with uncharacteristic concern on his face. "He's only 19."

"Perfect." Cat rifled through her cache of Ice Dragon files a moment. "Got him. Ayato Tachibana. Drop out, but only minimal criminal record. Good for you guys. Hmm...no sisters and mother's dead, dammit."

"How'd you know all that?" Inui sounded amazed.

"I...might already be a little familiar with your files." Cat studiously did not meet Soryu's gaze as she typed. Her cache of materials was still an offensive sore spot with the mob leader, and obviously something he hadn’t shared with his men. ”Right. So Volt has family controls which means shared GPS, good for us. Anyone here good at acting?"

Silence, again.

Cat really was beginning to doubt her choice of criminal partners. She gave a sigh and whipped out her own phone. 

"What are you doing?" Soryu asked.

"I need a liar to impersonate a family member and sweet-talk the customer service rep. As much as it pains me, I'm going to need Baba."

\---

“Fifteen minutes," Soryu said tensely. "Where's the damn thief?"

"He just responded with a bunch of smilies and rocket emojis. I assume that's Baba-speak for he's on his way. He’ll be here,“ Cat said before murmuring more quietly. "Hasn't let me down yet."

“You just haven’t been around him long enough.”

“Aww, why do you have to go saying stuff like that about your favorite thief?” Baba sauntered in with a couple twitchy-looking Ice Dragon guards hot on his heels. 

Soryu snorted. “And what, exactly, have you ever stolen for me?”

“There was the night I took Carolina off your hands.” Baba flashed a smile. “You still owe me for that.”

From the repulsed look that crossed Soryu’s face, Cat decided she really didn’t want to know who Carolina was. 

“So, Princess, what’d the grumpy man drag you into?” Baba asked with a pointed look.

“She volunteered,” Soryu said shortly.

“You boys can finish flirting later.” She nipped Baba by the sleeve and dragged him over to the laptop. “I need you to call Volt Cellular. How’s your worried big brother impersonation?”

After Cat explained the plan, Baba gave her a smile. "Leave it to me."

—

"Sakura? What a lovely name! It's so rare to meet a flower like yourself, my lady. Is that an Osakan accent I hear? I just moved to Tokyo and I think it's been so hard to meet good souls in a big city like this. Run the family business, you see, but I'm here for my little brother, and..."

"He knows how to take advantage of foolish women, I'll give him that much," Soryu said. He impatiently towered over Cat as she worked at the laptop, Inui fidgeting next to her. Cat was finding Ice Dragon headquarters 100% not conducive to concentration.

Cat began to nod in agreement, but stopped short. “Actually, I think it's the women taking advantage of him."  

She'd been half-listening to Baba flirt and charm his way through the customer service hotline for the last fifteen minutes--first to get the password reset to the account owned by the brother of Ayato Tachibana. Now to sell the story of a respectable older brother worried because his younger brother didn't return home after a late-night drinking binge and gosh couldn't you just turn on the family location services for him just this once? It’d been impressive.

But something had been bothering Cat about Baba's flirtations. Not the fact that they were different, somehow, than the way he talked to her--though that was interesting, too. She'd been listening intently trying to figure it out and she nearly stopped typing at her scripting tool as she landed on it.

"He gives them a easy out.”

Soryu waved a hand dismissively. "He's a womanizer."

Baba couldn't hear them as he was swept up in conversation at the other side of the room, but Cat lowered her voice just the same. "No. Those lines he uses, it’s not PUA crap. He pretends to be a gullible playboy, sure—but someone easy to take and easy to leave. Women are used to being toyed with. He gives them permission to toy with him."

Soryu snorted. “It’s still false. I don't see the difference."

"You would if you were a woman," Cat said dryly. 

"A flirt is still a flirt."

"Maybe. But always playing a fool for someone else's benefit..." Cat studied Baba’s profile as he talked animatedly on the phone. "That must be an awfully lonely way to live."

_Is that what he is doing around me?_

Cat felt a tendril of uncertainty form in her gut. Thankfully, she didn’t have time to feed it as Baba tapped the countertop to get her attention.

Baba scribbled down a string of characters on a notepad. Cat moved to fetch it and Baba slid it to her with a wink.

"Oh Miss Sakura, you're a lifesaver. Really. The blossom of my life." Baba continued to drawl into the phone. "No, I promise I will tell my brother to be more careful about his partying ways. And I'm going to hold you to that dinner, my blossom, yes? Please? I'll have my assistant call. Right, have a lovely day."

Cat was already tapping the code into the laptop. She drummed her fingers anxiously on the table as the map loaded.

"Bingo. If he's still with his phone, your men are...down at the industrial docks. Pier 73."

Soryu and his men were already moving. There was the sound of guns checked and coats grabbed as a dozen Ice Dragons ran down the hallway. Soryu was going with them. "Stay on it. I want an updated address every--"

 "Already sent a mirror of the GPS to your phone."

Soryu grunted an acknowledgement that--dare Cat say it--sounded grudgingly impressed. 

Then the mafia boss and his men were gone and the living room was strangely silent. Cat pushed herself back from the table with a sigh.

“How are you holding up, princess?” Baba leaned against the table, arms cocked behind him as he faced her.

“I’d be better if you all would just stay out of trouble for a change.”

“Says the hacker.”

Cat grinned. “Says the thief.”

“True enough. I hadn’t expected to see you volunteering to help a bunch of gang members.”

“And just watch Soryu’s people get hurt or killed?” Cat shook her head. “I’m not that tough.”

“No, you’re too strong to need to be tough. You can’t stop caring even when you want to.” Baba reached out and tucked a wild lock of hair behind Cat’s ear. He smiled. “It’s one of the things I love most about you.”

He used that word with dangerous ease. Cat’s stomach flipped and she automatically grabbed for a different line of conversation. “Baba, why hasn’t Soryu given me any work to do while I’m here?”

Baba’s smile didn’t fade, but Cat had known him long enough now to detect the slight flutter in his eyes. “Hmm? Well, probably because we all know your first priority should be figuring out what is in that information dump you told us all about. How’s that going, by the way?”

“I think I found something but it’s going to take a while to compile.” Cat answered quickly before scrutinizing Baba’s face. “But more specifically, when I asked Soryu for work, why did he tell me to _talk to you_?”

“Who knows the minds of mobsters like—“

“Baba,” Cat warned. “Truth.”

Baba’s mouth snapped shut. “You don’t have to take orders from them anymore.”

“Really. Did you hold Soryu’s hair gel hostage or something?”

Baba chuckled. “I used the auction protocol.”

“The what now? And why does everything you guys do have some creepy name?” Cat secretly suspected it was because the bidders were all twelve-year-old boys at heart, really.

“Something we have in place. Might find it hard to believe, but we do have some ethical standards when it comes to the auction,” Baba started to explain dryly. “Eisuke handles most of it before anything gets sold. That’s why all auction sales are final. But once we had people start putting themselves up for auction, like Luke, like you, we wanted a counter-measure in case a sale went bad.”

“The counter-measure being the ‘auction protocol’.” 

“Auction sales are final for all buyers. No returns,” Baba explained. “But within two weeks, if the sponsors find the buyer isn’t honoring the terms of the auction, they can transfer the sale to a different buyer.”

“Like a lemon clause for cars.”

“Not precisely,” Baba smiled. “But you won’t be getting yanked around by boss or Ota anymore. Didn’t expect you to go volunteering to help Soryu—”

“Wait.” Cat’s thoughts went cold. She had a bad feeling about where this was going. “…You’re saying you _bought_ me from the other bidders?”

“Not that they made it easy. Mamo, of all people, had the biggest problem with it. Said I shouldn’t draw you any more into my life either.” Baba made a pained face, as if it wasn’t a point he could argue. “And then Ota and Eisuke dug in their heels, but I think they just wanted to see how much they could wring out of me.”

“You didn’t just…refund them?”

“No. Eisuke argued loss of assets. I think you impressed him, clever girl. But, they eventually agreed to the original twenty million.” Baba rubbed his chin then gave a soft smile. “It was worth every penny.”

Cat fell silent. Baba reached out a hand for her cheek. “So now you don’t have to—“

“So you just went and decided to _own_ me?” Cat’s voice came out strangled and she jerked back. 

It was a small movement, a twist of her chin away from his fingers, but Baba flinched as if he’d been slapped. 

He lowered his hand slowly. “No, of course not. I just saw how you were struggling and I didn’t want to see you drawn even more into the other’s business. I told you I would never ask you to do anything—”

“As if that makes it better!” 

Cat’s voice seemed to get smaller the more upset she got. She felt sick. No, this was the _last_ thing she’d wanted. Just when she’d thought they were on even footing and maybe they even could be… _god dammit, Baba._  

She clenched her fists and stood. “Did it even occur to you to ask me?”

Whatever reaction Baba had expected, it didn’t seem he’d expected this. He raised his hands. “You’d already sold yourself once so I didn’t think you minded a change in ownersh—“ Baba grimaced and shook his head sharply. “Wrong word. Wrong word! That came out wrong.”

“Sounds about right to me,” Cat spat. 

“Princess…Kat.” Baba said cautiously, “Tell me why you’re upset. It’s not that different from before—”

“It is. It is _very_ much different, which I could have told you if you’d _asked me_ ,” Cat said, then stopped as she tried to figure that out. 

She’d been fine working for all of them, these men. Taking their money even, at the end of the month. It was a job. A convenient trade-off. _But $200,000 each, she could deal with that. Do work equal to that. That’s pocket change, Eisuke had said…._

 _Oh god,_ Cat blanched. _When did I start thinking like_ ** _Eisuke_** _of all people?_

But this was different. Baba had went and paid $20 million just to do her a favor, to save her. Again. Ridiculous, stupid, presumptuous. But her pride said she owed him for that. They were no longer even, in a way Cat could pretend was equal. No longer thief and hacker. And that difference left a deep, disappointed feeling in Cat’s gut.

“You should have told me. You should have asked me and let me come to a solution myself. I don’t need you to swoop in and save—“

“Yes, heaven forbid you accept help!” Baba sighed and raked a hand through his hair. “I…don’t you realize yet that I’d do anything for you? You’re important to me. I thought, maybe, if you felt the same—“

“Of course I do, idiot! Why do you think I’m upset?!” Cat smacked her hand over her mouth at that declaration and Baba fell quiet. Cat squeezed her eyes closed.

 _I did not just admit_ **_that_ ** _in the middle of an argument. This is worse than kissing him. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit._

After a long moment, she squinted open her eyes to see Baba looking at her like she was a heist he hadn’t quite believed he could pull off. The smile growing on his lips was disbelieving.

“If you do, princess, then—“ 

Cat raised her hand to cut him off.“It doesn’t matter. Not if we’re not equal.”

“I—w-what? …But you said—what do you mean?” Baba looked positively perplexed and Cat realized it was the first time she’d heard the clever, smooth thief trip over his words.

Cat flailed her arms. “Equal! As in not going and making decisions for each other and trusting the other person to decide what’s best for them and treating each other like functioning adults and…”

He gaped at her with confusion, boyish eyes uncertain. The realization swept over Cat with certainty. The flirting, the teasing, the endless compliments and flowers. The caretaking and one-way courting. …All only for as long as it was convenient for these women he adored. Cat tilted her head.

“You’ve…never had a woman ask for that. Have you, Baba?”

His cheeks flushed. Baba thought a moment then hesitantly touched her hand. “I suppose…I’ve never had the honor of a woman like you.”

His fingertips were warm and featherlight over her knuckles. Cat’s breath caught even as she bit down on the inside of her cheek. 

Dammit, he wasn’t arrogant or unthinking. Far from it. He just didn’t know better. For all his time as a smooth-talking ladykiller, the fact was that Cat perhaps had more experience in what constituted an actual, long-term, healthy relationships than Baba did. 

A giggle bubbled up inside her. Baba, inexperienced. _Oh god, no one would believe me._

But she could already see him analyzing his error. Gears churning in his warm brown eyes as he planned ways to make it right. With that realization her anger died, replaced by a warm ache in her chest.

She could so easily love this impossible man.

And it just made this part hurt so much worse.

“I’m gone in a week. I have to be. I’m sorry.” Cat turned away and headed towards the hallway. “No more clever plans. If you or the others have any work for me to do until then, just let me know.”

_If I run he will let me go. He lets everyone go. That’s how he operates._

She made it four steps before Baba caught her by the wrist. Her heart stopped.

“Don't. Don’t go,” Baba said in a strange, low voice.

A tug spun Cat to face him. Baba’s face was stormy. Hot, uncertain, vulnerable, determined, needful. His eyes weren’t bourbon or whiskey or caramel, not anymore. They were unmined copper and dark earth and volcanic thoughts. 

_And he wasn’t letting her go. Why wasn’t he letting her go? This isn’t in the plan, this isn’t—_

The sound of the door opening shut Cat’s mouth before she could think of something to say. Baba’s grip loosened. 

She drew away quickly as the Ice Dragons filed in. Managed to steady her breath. “Did you find them?”

“We did,” Soryu said. 

“Right where you said they’d be,” Inui said with obvious relief. The men looked tired and slightly grimy, but no one appeared to be injured.

“Was everyone safe?”

The question made Soryu raise a brow, but he nodded. “A couple men were injured in the original fight and are at the hospital now. But everyone’s accounted for. We got to them before they had time to act. Thanks to your work.”

“Oh, well, it wasn’t really—“

“You helped save my men,” Soryu said firmly.

Inui clasped his hands in front of him and gave a heart-felt bow. “The Ice Dragons thank you, Miss!”

Cat’s eyes widened as the rest of the men gathered followed suit. A dozen different scarred and scary-looking men murmuring thanks and bowing awkwardly.

Soryu didn’t bow. He seemed nearly as surprised as Cat as he flicked a glance over his men. After a moment he gave her a wry look and inclined his head. “It appears you can consider yourself an ally of the Ice Dragons.”

“Uh…glad to help,” Cat said weakly.

There was too much going on to take sensibly, even for Cat.The gangsters straightened and began returning to their work, thankfully turning the attention away from her again. Cat turned to look for Baba, but the thief had disappeared in the commotion. 

Of course he had. What had just happened?

_…Parameters unknown._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This continues the trend me of trying to generally hit the character beats and conflicts from the original kbtbb Baba story route in a unique way. I thought one of the important story points was exploring Baba's respect and unusual twist on the 'womanizer' character type. One of the things that stuck with me from the original route was finding out that Baba always let women dump him first because it was better than hurting someone. Such a sweet, convoluted babe, our Baba.
> 
> It's typical otome love interest behavior for the Dude to make unilateral decisions to 'protect' the MC, but Cat is having none of that. 
> 
> And yay Ice Dragons: the hacker will always protect her boys.
> 
> In the next chapter: Everyone has to face exactly what shit Cat has unknowingly brought with her. The bidders come up with a final plan.


	15. A Skeleton Key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cat shares why the Church is really after her, and the bidders finally decide what to do about their pet hacker and her problems.

_**Takkun:** wth is this new cloak and dagger shit_  
_**Catatonic:** oh good you got my message_  
_**Takkun:** you mean your crazy email that caused a wild goose chase around LRN to write down random letters from books like a crazy person_  
_**Takkun:** how the hell do you know the order of books on the boss’ bookshelf anyway?_  
_**Catatonic:** Because Atsumu has a laptop with a webcam and really bad email discipline. Tell him to stop using IE6._  
_**Takkun:** god dammit_  
_**Takkun:** that’s low though, especially for you_  
_**Catatonic:** sorry. I needed something only the real you could do. Just use the new code to randomize our chats from now on, ok?_  
_**Catatonic:** and delete the dump. Delete your logs. Delete anything I ever sent you._  
_**Takkun:** …?? wtf cat_  
_**Catatonic:** just do it. _  
_**Takkun:** the entire point of this pain in the ass was to hold onto this for you_  
_**Catatonic:** the point’s changed. Delete it._  
_**Catatonic:** From here on, don’t trust anything that comes from me without confirming it first. Offline. Something we’d only know._  
_**Takkun:** You really have gone full conspiracy nut. We use PGP, idiot_  
_**Catatonic:** Don’t trust PGP anymore either. _  
_**Takkun:** what?_  
_**Takkun:** shit_  
_**Catatonic:** yeah. Shit._

\----

It was only after twelve hours of testing and a six pack of energy drinks that Cat, at three in the morning, admitted what she’d found in the data dump. Soryu still wasn’t risking letting Cat out of headquarters, so she spent the rest of the wee hours breathing into a paper bag until the auction sponsors showed up. 

“It’s a program,” Cat announced. She took them through a demo that she thought the men all followed with impressive care for all of thirty seconds before their eyes glazed over.

“So it guesses your password?” Ota asked.

“It doesn’t _need_ to guess your password.” Cat entered in the public PGP key of one of her burner emails and pressed a button. She pointed to the string of alphanumerics that appeared after a brief wait. “That’s my email’s private key. That means it can read and spoof my email. Seamlessly.”

The expressions on the men’s faces didn’t change.

“It calculated my _private key_ from nothing more than my _public key._ ”

Nothing.

“…In _seconds.”_

A puff from Mamoru’s cigarette was the only movement.

Cat rubbed the bridge of her nose and tried again. “Right. You’re noobs, I forgot. So it’s…In the most basic terms, this thing lets you slip yourself into any digital communication without anyone knowing. You could just listen, or do a man-in-the-middle attack—intercept communication and make your own delivered message appear it’s coming from the trusted source. You aren’t hacking individual accounts, you’re just…I don’t know, bribing the mailman who delivers the messages.”

Eisuke raised a brow. “Isn’t that similar to what your type always does?” 

“That usually requires ‘my type’ to spend way too much time and resources targeting either individuals or individual systems. Like with the cellphone tracking I did for Soryu. We didn’t have time to attack the system so we got lucky and accessed a single user. Usually every hack comes down to either attacking a system or attacking the user—tricking the fallible human into doing what you want.” Cat gestured at the screen. “This is a third path. A vulnerability that shouldn’t be in the system. It nullifies whole _methodologies.”_

 _“_ Like a digital skeleton key?” Baba guessed and Cat rewarded him with a tense nod. The bidders didn't seem to realize the devastating potential of the code in front of them, but Cat could always count on Baba to detect a sneaky advantage.

“Kinda. And a big one.The encryption I just should you? It’s PGP encryption. No one can touch that. It’s the same encryption Snowden used to leak government secrets safely. Wikileaks admin use it. This is the same thing _governments_ use to secure their own communications. And victims would never notice because it’s not doing anything on _your_ system. It’s decrypting the data in a legit way. Breaking it like this…you can’t trust anything will be secure any more. The people that rely on this…”

Cat trailed off as she morosely thought of her friends.

“What could a group like the Church of Friends do with it?” Eisuke zeroed in on the practical threat, as usual.

Cat stared at the screen dazedly a long moment.“I don’t know about the Church, but I know what I could do with it.”

“What’s that?”

Cat raised her shoulders in a listless shrug. “Give me five minutes, I could start a scandal. Give me an hour, I could start a war.”

“You’re kidding,” Mamoru muttered.

Cat gave a mirthless, exhausted laugh. “I did plenty of testing before coming to this scary-ass conclusion. Anyone want to read the French president’s texts from last night?”

This time, when no one responded, it was because they understood completely.

Then Eisuke said, “Could it be used against them?” 

Eisuke was quick to look for opportunity, Cat gave him that much.

“In a limited manner. Right now, it’s a blunt instrument—dangerous as hell, as I showed you, but they way I compiled it, it’s only cracking things on a case by case basis. I took a look at the code. It keeps on wanting to ping something called _Bishop_ for commands.”

“Who’s Bishop?” Soryu asked.

“Not who. What.” Cat rubbed her eyes wearily. Two paranoid days without sleep had infested her eyes with sand. She felt a calming hand on her shoulder that she didn’t even need to turn around to recognize as Baba’s. She took a breath and pressed forward. “It looks like everything the Church does, digitally, is routed through a single server. I think Bishop is a rudimentary executive AI of some kind. Like a daemon. That’s…think of it like a program that has the authority to make individual decisions and order around lesser programs, based on what priorities it’s been given. Less sci-fi robot and more chess-playing software.”

“I thought you stole everything on the server,” Baba said. “So you would have Bishop.”

Cat shook her head. “He’s not on the server I hacked. Bishop’s only remote connected at certain times to update the orders.Someone’s manually running Bishop. We have the gun but not the software that's pulling the trigger. Slick work. Whoever set it up is smart.”

Ota hummed. “You’re saying you think the Church has another ‘Cat’ of their own?”

“That's flattering, but he's not a ‘me’. This guy’s in another class. I’ll decrypt anything but I don’t know much about building an AI besides the fact that it always ends up being a bad idea in sci-fi movies.” Cat’s mouth tightened. “But they have someone. Asshole’s been sending me taunts since they killed Bl0om.”

“…You mean since you stole their money,” Soryu said.

“Details,” Cat muttered.

—

“That woman is nearly more trouble than she’s worth,” Soryu grumbled. 

Their exhausted hacker had retreated to her room--sans laptop, or she'd just stare at it more--after no small amount of cajoling from Baba. The auction sponsors lingered in Soryu’s office to decide what to do with the information.

“You said ‘nearly’, Soryu. I knew you had a soft spot for college girls but—“ Ota said up until Soryu reached for the gun under his jacket. 

“You only need one hand to paint, right?”

“Jeez—joke! Joke! You need to relax. Take up meditation.”

“If the mystery is solved, I assume protection will be simple enough.” Eisuke drew their attention back to the matter at hand. 

Soryu stowed his weapon again with a huff. “It was never complicated, but yes. We know what to look for now, so keeping her here or at the Penthouse is simple enough.”

Eisuke nodded. “Good. The contract is only for five more days so—“

“I’m going after them,” Baba said.

The gazes of the other men varied from judiciously amused (Ota) to cold and derisive (Soryu). Baba leaned back on his knuckles and smiled lazily. “I’m going after the Church and this so-called Bishop. And I would appreciate your assistance.”

Mamoru closed his eyes. “Y’ve lost your damned fool mind over that kid.”

“What possible reason could we have to do that?” Soryu said.

Baba spread his hands wide. “Thief, treasure: simple math. What kind of thief would I be if I let her go? And do correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think it’s in your best interests to let Cat disappear or get disappeared by these guys either.”

Eisuke made a dismissive sound. “I’ll give that she’s clever, but the woman is completely useless. She’s untrustworthy, mercenary, duplicitous of thought, twists everything to her own means—“

 _Eisuke could be describing himself. I knew there was a reason they loathed each other,_ Baba thought dryly. A quick glance around the room said he wasn’t the only one thinking it. 

Wisely, and with a strong sense of self-preservation, no one said so.

“Setting aside for a minute how many millions she’s saved you, she knows the weaknesses of your company and that of your competitors. There's a tool out there that can harm all of us, and she's the one who could stop it--that's why they want her. That’s not a card you usually let go back into the deck, Boss,” Baba said carefully.

“A card I can’t reliably play is worthless.”

Baba smiled. _Sorry, Boss. I'm not letting you ever play anything about her, ever again._

“Then maybe we treat her like a player and not a card.”

Eisuke considered. “I want this new toy she’s discovered. It obviously has uses.”

This was not a negotiation, but Baba kept his expression mild. “That’s up to Cat. Her heist, after all.”

Eisuke scoffed. “You think I will deal with that woman?”

“Players and cards, boss,” Baba said lightly.

Eisuke narrowed his eyes without response.

Baba used the momentum to turn his head to Soryu. “And I believe someone just earned the gratitude and support of the Ice Dragons.”

Soryu made a grunt that bordered on a curse.

The major muscle out of the way, Baba turned to Ota. “And you—“

“I’ll help,” Ota interrupted with a languid grin. “But only if you promise your mousie stays at the Penthouse a while.”

Baba’s smile twitched a fraction. “Why?”

“Tech support and entertainment.”

Mamoru cut in before Baba could dignify a response. “What about me? Why should I help you, eh?”

Baba rubbed his chin and turned to look where the rumpled detective slouched by the door. “To protect her from a life of crime, of course. I’m a bad man after all.”

“Bah. She’s already a pain in the ass. Everything about that kid is too much work.” Mamoru slouched further into his hat. He made a throat clearing sound and after a moment he added. “Make her cry and I’m handing you over to Ayase.”

That amounted to enthusiastic agreement, for Mamoru. Baba shrugged. “If I make her cry, I’ll let you.”

“I assume you have a plan then,” said Eisuke.

“Who do you think you’re talking to? These guys are pretending to run a religion…So…” Baba leaned his head back and relished the feeling. The start of a plan, and a ridiculous one at that. He was doing this for Cat, but the illicit freedom of the plan was a high all it’s own. There was a reason he was a thief. 

“…So let’s steal us a prophet.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the techies: yes, I'm totally aware PGP encryption doesn't really work this way and I got so many facts wrong. A thousand apologies. It's a world with secret auctions and magic chocolate, so accuracy is taking a backseat to fun stories. :D
> 
>  _In the next episode:_ HEIST and sexual tension! And someone gave Cat a taser. NO GOOD CAN COME OF THIS.


	16. Worst Thief Ever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baba infiltrates a Church party and sees the return of the murder dress as our duo gets into trouble. Sequins and tasers!

“That is a terrible idea. You’re a terrible thief.”

“Such sweet words. My lady flatters me.”

“Terrible,” Cat muttered again with plenty of exasperation but not much malice. 

Baba stole a glance at her profile, lit by a fleeting trail of streetlights as the car snaked through Tokyo, away from the Ice Dragon headquarters. Instead of silver and gold, she was painted in the colors of the city, grey and twilight and flashes of neon. The lights of Tokyo suited her, but then again all the world suited Cat in Baba’s eyes.

The day after Cat’s demo, Soryu had declared that Cat could return to the Penthouse. Baba half thought it was less about the new security situation and more about the number of gutted gadgets and networking wires that had begun to take over Cat’s corner of Ice Dragon headquarters. Soryu was eager to get Cat out, and Baba was more than happy to volunteer to drive her back in his most impressive—fastest, blackest, and Italianest—car. 

The sports car’s ridiculously tiny back seat was filled with hoodies, electronics, and never-worn evening gowns. It was perhaps not the most romantic, but it was also entirely Cat-like in ways that made Baba smile. Cat had thrown everything haphazardly into a laundry basket and there’d been a moment when Baba had gotten a glimpse of cotton and lace in candy colors peeking through the sides. Simple underwear, bras and boyshorts. But somehow the domesticity of it stuck maddeningly in Baba’s imagination.

Baba focused firmly on the road. “If we take care of this, you don’t have to run. You could see your family again.”

Chapped fingers worried absently at her hair. “The Church is untouchable. I dug through everything, every roster I could find, before coming to Tres Spades. Don’t you think I would have tried taking them down if I could?”

“Ah, but you didn’t have a master thief at your disposal then, beautiful.”

“And significantly fewer headaches.” A grin slid across Cat’s face as she glanced at him.  

He felt her gaze fall on his face then skitter down, across his collar, shoulders, arms and back up. He felt it like a touch. In the dim light, he imagined he could see her cheeks warm, but it could just as easily been his own thoughts that made everything about her bloom. Baba wondered if there was anything he could ever do to have the same effect on her, to warm the color-leeched parts of her world. He’d steal the sun for her.

“Is life around here really that bad, princess?” Baba asked instead.

A faint laugh escaped her lips. “When no one’s trying to kill us? It’s…a seven, sure.” 

In the next quiet pause, they both seemed to reflect how awkward that statement was. Their old scoring scale. How long it had been since Cat had referenced it. Not that Baba had stopped trying to win her over with his words; he had a virtual font of things left unsaid, words best whispered in pillows and lips. But somewhere along the way, Cat had stopped ranking him. Numbers no longer piled up like little fences to keep things tidy. It was gloriously messy.

Baba had never got that perfect ten, though. He couldn’t decide whether to plot a new strategy or if it was a bigger victory to remain numberless in Cat’s eyes.

Baba cleared his throat. “The others want to do this, too. We have a plan.”

“And this plan is basically throwing excessive amounts of money-and-or-violence at a problem until it goes away?“

Baba wasn’t sure to be impressed or annoyed with Cat’s understanding of the auction sponsors. “…Small elements of both might be involved.”

“No,” Cat said again. “It’s too dangerous, especially with what we know they are involved with now. It’s just safer for everyone if I stick to the plan.”

“This is the plan where you disappear?” Baba asked.

Cat’s jaw tensed as she looked down. “Yeah.”

“I don’t care for that plan at all, princess,” Baba said softly. 

Cat looked up with a naked expression, too startled to pick a mask. 

“In fact,” Baba met her eyes, his voice firm. “I am certain I hate it.”

He saw her hesitate. Baba probably should have kept his eyes on the road, but he knew the minute he looked away he’d lose the chance to face this conversation head on. Besides, the freeway was straight and empty. Mostly. Probably.

Cat’s tongue darted out to lick dry lips. His eyes followed it. 

Cat said, “What else could I—we—“

His phone beeped. 

Baba ignored it.

It beeped again.

Cat took a breath that, to Baba, sounded irritatingly like relief. “Sounds like you should take that.”

Baba let out a small sigh. He studied her face for another moment before grimacing. He gave the road a quick glance before picking up the phone and scrolling through the text. 

It was from Ota. Since most of the Church’s membership were either celebrities or old money—old money that bought art—they’d planned to use Ota’s connections to learn who the vulnerable executives were in the Church, who might have this ‘ _Bishop’_ on them. Ota had come through: there was a major Church gala tonight, and Church figureheads would be there. Figureheads meant access credentials, and parties meant people not watching their possessions. Ota sent along an alias on the guest list and the address. 

Baba snapped it closed. “Small detour. I’ve got an errand before we head back to Tres Spades.”

Cat raised a brow. “An errand?”

“Forgot my dry-cleaning. Silly me.”

“Dry-cleaning, right. What are we stealing now?”

“Just a small opportunity I can’t afford to pass up, princess,” Baba continued blithely as he diverted the car off the freeway and towards the residences set at the more glittering edges of Tokyo. “But I promised I wouldn’t need your help with these things. You can stay in the car while I pop in.”

“An opportunity? I already said no to going after the Church, Baba.”

Baba simply smiled as they began to drive past increasingly more ornate fences and gated communities. He reached for something out of his bag. “It seems I can’t change your mind about that. I suppose I should warn you about him then.”

—

“Him?” Cat wasn’t sure she liked the sound of it.

A thick manila folder landed in in her lap. “Him,” Baba said. “After you disappear, there’s going to be plenty of people looking for you, but this is the one I think you should watch for.”

“You’re doing research on my behalf now?” 

“A service I provide only to the most beautiful and stubborn.”

Cat gifted Baba with a wry smile as she gingerly thumbed open the folder. Inside was an extensive profile detailing the life of one Kenzo Murakami. The name was unfamiliar. 

Cat frowned as she started to read. “Does he work for the Church?”

“No, but don’t you think you’ve done plenty to draw attention?”

Cat snorted then let out a sigh. “The auction. You thik he works for someone who saw me at auction? I hadn’t figured on anyone caring after the bid but..” Cat ran a finger down to the ‘available assets’ line. “ _Holy shit_ he’s a rich asshole.”

A sardonic smile, dry as paper, came across Baba’s lips. “Looks like it.”

“Probably the auctions then,” Cat felt the first twinge of nerves. “Maybe that means he’ll bore easy. I just disappear.”

“I don’t think this guy will give up that easy. Not until he finds you again.” Baba pulled the car to park at the side of what looked to be a very moneyed neighborhood. Cat squinted at the lawns. The topiaries looked like they cost more than a year of Cat’s tuition. “In any case, you can stay in the car and look that over. I’ll be right back, but lock the doors, beautiful lady.”

Something niggled at Cat, but Baba’s second statement distracted her. “You’re going in alone?”

“Miss me already, darling?” Baba flashed a smile and secured a tiny bluetooth bauble in his ear. He motioned to the glove compartment. “Simple job, I’ll be back before you know it. If you get lonely, a headset’s in there. I’ll be happy whisper in your ear while I work.”

Cat bit the inside of her lip to keep from rewarding that with a smile. “See, distractions. Worst thief ever.”

The worst thief ever reached back through the window to snatch up her hand. The curve of his lips brushed her knuckles. Soft and warm. A soft pressure that gave just slightly to press against her skin. Like peaches, Cat thought. Like home.

He winked and was gone.

——

As usual, Baba left Cat not quite sure whether she wanted to punch him or kiss him. She watched him lope easily down the street, disappearing past the gates of a glittering mansion after stunning the gate guards with his charm and a flash of his wallet. Cat shook her head and turned her attention back to the file in front of her.

Kenzo Murakami. As if this was going to make her change her mind. Cat wondered why Baba insisted on showing her this file. From anyone else, she’d consider that he was trying to intimidate her, scare her with boogeymen to get her to agree to his crazy plan. 

But. Baba was many things, but not a bully. He had to think he was doing her a favor.

She reached the history section. A product of some kind of child labor farm operation, then smoothly transitioning into a thievery crime ring of some kind until he struck out on his own. The list of martial proficiencies and training was extensive. Baba had been right; this one would be a hard guy to hide from.

Cat imagined what kind of man that kind of background would produce. Cruel and hard, could one be any other way after a life like that? She shuddered. Was this the kind of shadows she’d be running from the rest of her life? Man-made monsters and black pits made by the Church, ready to swallow her whole.

Cat closed her eyes to fight back the anxiety. Maybe Baba _was_ a damn bully for showing her this. Didn’t he think she already knew? This is _why_ she had to run, why she had to disappear and be no one. Because if she remained Katsuko, remained Cat, remained _anyone_ then these were the shadows she’d bring with her. And there were no fighting shadows. Shadows always won.

She flipped through the pages, getting more resentful as she read. Murakami was proficient in a dozen languages. Murakami owned businesses and property in twenty countries. Murakami had connections to a dizzying number of underworld figures. Murakami was like some ridiculous comic book super shadow who—

_…Oh. Ohhh._

Cat made it to the back page of the profile. 

There was a crisp scan of a driver’s license with the strange name, Kenzo Murakami. And there, staring back at her, was a familiar smile in caramel and whiskey. Cat traced the glasses shoddily disguising Baba’s eyes with one fingertip.

_“I don’t think this guy will give up until he finds you again.”_

Cat brought a hand up to her lips and closed her eyes. Tried to wrestle up some vestige of annoyance or anger and failed. All she could feel was the ache in her chest that felt ready to turn her into something hopeful and, probably, suicidally foolish.

She wrestled the headset out of the glovebox and flicked it on.

“Hey.” Cat wasn’t sure how secure the line was so she avoided names.

“Hey, pretty lady. Craving my voice already?”

Cat heard a muffled click and rustle of fabric. She could imagine Baba, hat tilted low as he slipped past the masses, past defenses into places he wasn’t supposed to be. He had that effect on places. And on people. “Nice profile you have here.”

“I thought so,” Baba sounded smug. Then there was a pause where an uncertain tone crept into his voice. “But, if you really want to avoid someone like…him…there’s ways—“

Cat considered the photo in front of her. Hopeful and foolish. “I didn’t say that.”

_Though I probably should._

“Oh. Well.” It didn’t take Baba long to switch back to cheerfully confident She had to grant him that. “Going to set up as a travel agent, I think. I wanted to pick something I could get comfy in, after all. Could be a long heist.”

Cat leaned back with her eyes closed. She felt her shoulders relax as she listened to his voice. “Lots of defenses?”

“The most. I like to think I’m making progress though.”

“Sounds like an awful lot of work,” Cat pointed out.

“What I’m after is worth it. Rare find. One of a kind.”

“Yeah? And what’s that?”

Baba paused before he said with a quiet sincerity, voice all whispered whiskey. “The only thing worth stealing.”

_God dammit, even a cheesy line sounds good when he says it like that._

Cat hoped Baba couldn’t hear her as she swallowed back the lump in her chest. She flipped through the profile in front of her as a distraction. Looking at it again, she realized certain bits lined up with what she previously knew from her snooping on Baba. The bank accounts and cars he drove and…

But there was that horrific background. A startled thought crept up on her. 

“Hey,” Cat hesitated. “You wanted me to see this profile, so does that mean it’s all made up or…”

“Ah, hold that thought, princess.” Baba’s voice suddenly dropped into something dusty and dripping with stock options. “I see a gentleman who’s hand I absolutely MUST shake…”

Cat heard talking for a few moments that faded into a shuffle of thick carpets and crowds. She could clearly make out the tinkle of glass fading as he must have followed someone through the mansion. Static grew progressively worse, chopping up and forcing Cat to furrow her brow as she strained to listen. She nearly jumped when the line burst with a staccato crash.

A half second sound of movement, the start of a man’s voice, more static—

Then nothing. 

“Hey.” Cat leaned forward in her seat. “Hey, I’m feeling ignored over here.”

Quiet. 

“Baba,” Cat risked his name. “Not funny. Make some kind of noise if you can hear me, at least.”

Not even static.

Down the street, Cat saw the guards flutter, gathered near a screen set into the inside of the gated wall. The air was still silent, no alarms, no raised voices, but unease curled in her gut. 

Cat chewed on her lip. Then tossed the folder to her feet and hauled out her laptop. 

It was simple enough to find and slip onto the mansion’s operational wifi. Only slightly more complicated to figure out where the supposedly secure security network intersected with the regular traffic and make the jump. A few clever tricks later and she had what she was looking for. There were no alarms on the system. Cat scrolled through the normal security updates with a frown as she tried reaching Baba on the headset again. Nothing.

She found her way into a map of the place, UI lit up like Christmas with security systems. _Jezus, Baba, what were you after? This was not a impulse stop._ Her eyes lit on the one wing, strangely devoid of cameras or sensors. At least, not on this system. It was either wide open, or guarding something even more important than the rest of the house.

_That’s where my stupid thief would be._

Cat chewed on her lip as she considered her options. In an emergency, Baba would want her to wait in the car, but all parties involved knew that wasn’t happening. She could call Soryu, but the Ice Dragons’ typical solution to any problem was loud and violent and this looked like a perfectly civil neighborhood. She could easily do a little havoc in the security system from here but without knowing what was going on inside, she could easily just end up putting Baba in more danger.

Which left Option D. It was always Option D.

Cat made a few minor adjustments to the security network, synced up her phone. Then she turned and began to riffle through her possessions in the back seat.

—

Religious parties were the worst. The marks were sober, the guards were alert, and the champagne was _awful._ Security was tight. Baba wasn’t having the best night. 

“This isn’t the way to the wine cellar?” He tippled his champagne glass to spatter the shoes of the security guard. Who was very, very not amused. “I was told this was the way to the wine cellar, my good man.”

“This area is not open to party guests, sir. Why are you here?”

“The _wine cellar._ I just said that.” The guard begin to thumb nervously at his radio, so Baba grabbed at his arm with a drunken pat. Even so, he silently began calculating the distance to the french doors behind him, approximate thickness of glass and time to cross the lawn. It would take a while to lose them then double-back to the car… “I _must_ ask the sommelier about these _grapes._ ”

“Grapes?”

“Yes, for example, are they organic? I only can tolerate _organic_ wines, you see, and…”

The guard’s dull face shuttered and Baba knew he was about to hear the magic words. “Sir, I am going to need you to come with me…”

“ _Michi_ -kun, there you are!”

A distinctly female squeak made both Baba and the security guard turn. And Baba’s mouth dropped.

A woman in glittering scarlet swept down the hall towards them like a thunderhead. It took Baba a dazed moment to realize, from the stomp in her step and tendril of wild hair escaping from a hastily slicked-back chingon that it wasn’t merely a woman. It was _the_ woman. Cat wore her murder-dress like a weapon.

And with the realization that it was, indeed, Cat, Baba found he could only see her in parts. Such unusual, lovely parts, reconfigured into something unrecognizable from the hacker in hoodies and jeans. Baba had the pleasure of being on the arm of many beautiful women, but this… 

This.

Absurdly, the first place Baba’s eyes came to rest was on that curve of exposed shoulder. The milky skin that dipped into the shaded hollow of her collarbone. The glimmering rise and roll of curves, normally hidden by baggy tees and scuffed denim, that turned his tongue thick and dry in his mouth. The sequins on the dress hadn’t been done justice in the dressing room, but here under gilded lights, they raced spirals around Cat’s hips, as if one strong breeze—or base impulse—would unwind it completely…

Unwarranted, Baba’s mind flashed back to the candy-colored cotton spilling from the edge of a laundry basket. The juxtaposition with—and potentially beneath—the glittering wrapper in front of him was unbearable.

_I am a bad, weak man._ Baba hoped whatever pitiful noise he made was buried under the clop of fierce heels on marble. 

“Where have you _been?”_ A smack of an equally glittered purse to his shoulder brought Baba back to his senses. Cat glared at him with a foreign, pouty look. _“_ What’s the idea of abandoning me at the _truffle bar_? You know the sight of fungus makes me positively faint.”

Her voice was pitched to a strange, simpering note that made her suddenly sound like every shallow date he’d brought to Eisuke’s parties, and Baba felt a strange mix of familiarity and self-loathing. 

He coughed and recovered with an appropriately brow-beaten grin. “Now dumpling, I was just looking for you…”

“I thought you were looking for the sommelier,” the security guard seemed to have recovered as well, and now seemed to be eyeing Cat with trepidation. Baba couldn’t blame him. In hoodies, Cat’s glare was formidable. In a dress, it was terrifying. 

“Do you know this man, miss?” the guard asked.

“To my grave misfortune. Don’t tell me he’s broken something?” Cat said. Baba didn’t think the spoiled party-girl she was going for would use terms like ‘ _grave misfortune._ ’ You could take the hacker out of a hoodie but you can’t take the lit major out of the hacker. 

“No, ma’am. But this is a restricted area and an intruder—“

“Michi!” Cat cut off the security guard with a scandalized squeal. “I was having _cosmos_ with _Mikoto._ If you ruin my evening I will never forgive you!”

“Isn’t there some way we can clear this up?” Baba turned a pleading gaze towards the guard.

The guard looked like _all_ he wanted to do was clear this up and go home. “Well, I suppose if I just took your names…”

“Excellent!” Cat rewarded the guard with an uncharacteristic, dazzling smile that left Baba a little jealous. She began rifling through her ridiculously tiny purse to come up with an ID. “My name is Katsuk—“

“Haah! Are names so necessary?!” Terror shot through Baba in an instant. 

He’d been so dazzled by Cat’s entrance, he’d momentarily forgot the _very bad_ implications of her being here. At a party. Hosted by _the Church._ She’d managed to get in without anyone recognizing her face, but if her name was noticed by their hosts, they were screwed.

“Yes, yes they are.” The guard’s hand veered towards his belt again. “Maybe you both better come with me while I call this—“

That couldn’t happen. He might have just ran earlier, but not with Cat at stake. Baba tensed and bunched his hand into a fist as he subtly shifted his feet.

Then there was an electric snapping sound and the guard convulsed to the floor.

Cat stared at the compact black device in her hand that still sparked with hissing blue sparks. She let out a breath with an airy blink. “…Whoa.”

Baba found himself at a loss for words for the second time in the night. This was new for him. “… _Where…where_ did you get a taser?!”

“Soryu gave it to me before we left.” Cat shrugged sheepishly, making sure the sparks had stopped before stowing it back into her comically small bag. “I wanted something for back-up. He offered to teach me how to shoot but I don’t like guns so…man, that worked really fast though?”

_Knowing her, she’s going to have that thing over-clocked and wired for bluetooth before tomorrow. I’ll kill him. I will literally kill him._

“50,000 volts tends to do that,” Baba said instead.

The guard was beginning to moan as his muscles twitched. Baba sighed and placed a very careful kick along the man’s neck to still him again. “Don’t worry about it. Just…wait here a moment. Did I mention you look delectable, princess?” Baba quickly drug the body into a unused room. 

“I was going for sufficiently spoiled and dumb, myself. You stopped responding.” Cat explained as he resurfaced. 

“So you decided to party-crash?”

“Easy enough to add myself to the guest list. I got bored,” Cat said with a grin.

“Your loving concern melts my heart, pretty lady, but I…” Baba stopped cold. “You put your name on the guest list. Your _real_ name?”

“They were checking IDs and it was the only card I had on me.” Cat shrugged. “Why does that—hey!”

Baba snagged her wrist and began to stride quickly down the deserted hall, away from the main hall. He tried to do mental calculations in his head, how long before someone with enough authority to recognize Cat’s name looked at the guest list, whether alarms would be pulled and routes blocked and how easily he could throw the glittering, confounding woman behind him over a ten foot fence without anyone noticing. 

But there were too many unknowns and not enough time.

“Baba…?” Cat’s voice sounded more subdued as she read his mood. Baba squeezed her hand reassuringly. It felt suddenly too small and delicate in his.

“This isn’t just a party. This is a _Church_ party and we need to get you out of here right now.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obviously every girl's party prep should include a murder dress, mob-regulation taser, and a vulnerable wifi hotspot.
> 
> Next chapter: HEIST HIJINKS ENSUE. And a possible ratings change for this fic? Maybe? *shifty eyes*


	17. When the Running Stops

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spending a night at Baba's means Cat stops running from a lot of things. As usual, the fallout is simultaneously wonderful and awful.

"That was a laugh. You were _laughing._ How were you laughing?"

"We just jumped. Off a roof," Cat clutched her hand to her chest to catch her breath. "To escape armed guards. Of a church! In a _cocktail dress._ "

They were pressed against the brick of one of the many small buildings that dotted the manicured lawn surrounding the mansion. Baba tilted his head away, presumably to watch for danger and to not quite successfully hide his smile. "The guards were in dresses? Would have let myself be caught to see that."

Cat had too much adrenaline rolling through her system to stop grinning. "Stop. You're crazy. This is crazy."

"We had a rope."

"I still don't know where you pulled that from."

"I'll be glad to show you later, pretty lady." Baba winked. "You seem to be enjoying yourself."

"I am, which makes me crazy too," Cat admitted. They paused, quieting as footsteps crunched near their hiding spot then faded. A light rain had started and Cat shivered. "So do we have a plan, oh master thief?”

“Hmm, call me _master_ again and I’m sure I’ll think of something,” Baba said and Cat nudged him. “Don’t worry. Just have to get past the gates and I’ll have you home before you turn into a pumpkin.” 

“I think it’s the carriage that does that, actually. But what—“ Cat opened her mouth to ask something else, but Baba abruptly collided into her. They both tumbled further behind the bushes. 

She found her back pressed against the dirt and Baba’s lips startlingly close to her ear.

“What—“

“Floodlights,” Baba murmured and over his shoulder Cat could see the fence light up like daytime. Baba sighed and his warm breath tumbled along her neck. “This complicates things. Give me a minute, princess.”

He gently released her and peered around the corner, scanning the fence. What was unspoken was obvious to Cat: No matter what Baba had initially stolen, someone had taken note of her name. The security network would be humming with...

"Oh! I'm an idiot." Cat fumbled for her clutch.

A matter of minutes later, the lights flickered and died on the entire parameter. Even the gate's manned booth went dark. Baba's brows shot up and Cat waggled her phone at him.

"I mighta done more than just put my name on the guest list."

She tried not to sound too smug, but, c'mon now, it was hard _not_ to.

Baba's reaction was too fast to follow, but Cat was surprised to see his brows furrow. He stared at her a moment.

_Oh, c'mon, that was awesome. Tell me that wasn't awesome._

But Baba said nothing. Cat pretended not to notice the lackluster response. _Fine, and for the encore..._ She held up her finger as she studied the phone. "And if you'll wait for it..."

On cue, an alarm sounded coming from the opposite side of the estate. Heavy boots and guns clattered by as security teams shifted away from the gate to check out the new disturbance.

"There's your opening, Great Lupin." Cat felt giddy, despite herself. "Are we jumping again?"

"No. We're running," Baba said shortly. He grabbed Cat's wrist and bolted for the abandoned entrance.

\--

Cat had lost her heels somewhere between the roof and the neighboring park. Her feet were cold, trudging through wet midnight grass in a rain that came down as a mist, but that wasn't the thing bothering her at the moment.

It was the frown. Baba was frowning. They'd just had a spectacular escape from a heist, the kind of thing thieves live for, and Baba was frowning.

Cat tried again. "This isn't the way to the car."

"They may be checking the near-by streets. We'll go somewhere else and get the car tomorrow," Baba said distractedly. He seemed to be leading her to a side road that curved around the opposite end of the suburban area, but Cat was so turned around she couldn't be certain.

"But my things--"

"Your laptop will be fine, I promise."

Cat pushed air through pursed lips. "You're...angry with me?"

Baba stopped and his face softened in the dark. "Of course not, why would you say that?"

"Because you haven't called me 'princess' or 'pretty lady' or something once in the last ten minutes. That's a new record."

Baba averted his eyes. "Is that so."

The response stopped Cat in her tracks. "Oh my god, you _are_ upset. What for?"

Baba glanced around warily and rubbed hard at his chin. An absent act that was so familiar by now it made Cat's heart ache a little. He mumbled something.

Cat squinted. "What was that?"

"...use you..."

Cat gave an exasperated sigh and tugged his hand down.

"I never wanted to use you," Baba repeated. His eyes crumpled with regret as he finally met Cat's gaze.

"I have...no idea what you're talking about. What...?"

"I didn't bring you along to help me! The...hacking. Stuff. _Why_ would you do that?"

It took her a minute to piece it together. "Wait, you're mad because I came after you?"

"I asked you to just wait."

"You stopped responding!" Cat noted

"It was dangerous!"

"I had a tazer!"

"That's not...why would you even--that wasn't part of the deal, you didn't have--"

"I was worried about _you_ , you stupid dork!"Cat glared and Baba seemed to wilt.

"You...worried?" And Baba sounded so soft, so surprised, so unprepared, that Cat stopped as well.

Baba's gaze flicked between her face and the ground. The ground seemed the more certain choice as he started to speak."When you showed up at the auctions, I decided I wasn't going to ...use you. I wasn't going to ask you to do anything for me, not like the others. I wanted it to be clear that I wasn't interested in your skills. I didn't want to be just..."

Cat studied his face. Baba looked practically in pain. It could be called anger, in a way, but a miserable self-consuming kind. He more looked upset that someone had kicked over his sand castle.

So it was probably a little mean when she started to laugh.

Baba startled as she leaned forward. Cat giggled until tears started to stream down her face and it became hard to breathe.

_The auction protocol._

She thought of the auctions. She thought of the auctions and infuriating rich men and $20 million dollars and bought favors and peaches and moonlight. She clutched at his suit coat and rest her forehead on his chest as she doubled over again.

Baba held still, becoming a particularly confused statue. "...uh. Princess?"

"You...ah, and me. Us. Words. Right. Oh my god, we're just so...," Cat gasped and giggled again. She looked up with vision blurry and felt her face break into a ludicrous smile.

"It really sucks when someone tries to save you without permission, right?" Cat said. Because they seemed to be perpetually saving each other. And arguing about it and storming off only to crash into each other again, like planetary bodies of disaster.

She was never getting out of his orbit.

Baba was quiet. Cat studied his face then swallowed hard. She added in a weaker voice, before she could think better of it. "...you know, I think I love you."

The reaction was still wordless, but infinitely satisfying. Baba's eyes widened a fraction. A glorious shade of red rushed to his cheeks as he stared at her.

"...well that's just not fair," he croaked.

Not the reaction she was expecting. Cat stopped and felt of twinge of nervousness. "What?"

"You cheated, Princess. I was supposed to get to say that first." His arms snaked around her waist, pulling her firmly to him as he oh-so-quickly got over his embarrassment. His hands feathered over her hips.

Cat felt her stomach flutter. "Well...I just said I _think_."

"Well, lucky for me, I know." He ducked forward, lips over her ear. "My Cat. Can I steal you?"

She leaned back. Baba's mouth parted slightly to say something more, but Cat already had a grasp on his lapels. She pulled him down, pressed her lips to his, and leaned into the most warm, most honest emotion she'd felt in ages.

It was something worth stealing.

\---

When Baba came back to his senses, he seemed to finally notice the rain. And Cat's increasingly cold barefeet. Before she knew it, her view tilted to watching the trees pass by Baba's shoulder.

"What on earth do you think you're doing?"

"Princess carry, princess." Baba flashed her a dazzling, elated grin. Teeth like pearls in the dark. "Been waiting to use that one."

"And I'm not even dignifying it with a score," Cat said, her cheeks beginning to color. "Put me down, please."

"Nope."

"Baba!"

"Never going to happen."

The rain was coming down in earnest by the time he brought her to a small, tidy house on the waterfront. Cat looked around as Baba locked the door and set about fetching towels and blankets. The inside was...tidy, that was the only word for it. A couch in the cozy sitting area, a bed in the room beyond and, looking out the window, a shaded porch that had a view of the Tokyo water front and skyline beyond. Simple furniture, but books and curiosities lined the shelves and made it obvious that the place was lived in, personal.

"Who's place is this?" Cat asked suspiciously. She was not in the mood to deal with another mad dash from an upset homeowner or security patrol.

"Mine," Baba said.

Cat twisted around. "I...thought you lived at the penthouse."

"I live a lot of places." Baba gestured to the curiosities on the shelves. Cat could see now that they were baubles and tokens from a number of cultures and countries. Rather than fine, priceless trophies or stolen goods, on closer inspection she could see they were touristy crap. A snowglobe from Venice here. A tiny plastic empire state building from America there. A keychain teddy bear from Chile. So childish and charming, and so utterly Baba.

"Boss keeps me busy. The penthouse is just where I stay when he needs me or we're having an auction. Though, I've...had more incentive to stick around as of late." Baba's smile softened.

"Oh," said Cat, the ever eloquent.

"I suppose if anywhere was called home, this would be it." Baba's eyes unfocused as he glanced around the room. "I don't normally bring anyone here."

Cat huffed. "You mean you don't bring lady friends here and I should feel honored?"

"Nope," Baba said. "I mean I don't bring anyone. I don't think even Boss or the others know about it."

"Oh." And then the understanding took over that they were really, truly alone here--reliably alone, with no demanding hoteliers or grumpy mob bosses or helpful underlings prone to burst in at any moment. It was a cramped cabin on the waterfront, worlds away from opulent penthouses or mob dens, but after a month of protection,  _alone_ suddenly seemed like a startling luxury.

Alone, with caramel eyes and those damn thief hands. And all of those doubts and grudges and hesitations that she'd relied on were gradually crumbling away and alone with Baba after that kiss and the rain and _shit I said that thing and why is he looking at me like now and oh, no._

Cat was a resourceful woman.

She could storm a soiree. Hack a network. Taze a guy (kinda). Run in heels, even.

She could blackmail an Ice Dragon mob boss and _the Eisuke Ichinomiya_ and live to (never) tell the tale.

But she suddenly could not stand in an empty cabin and look Baba in the eye. Not when he was looking at her like that. Not when she could still taste him on her lips. Her shoulders crept up with tension. She spun on her heel and plucked a souvenir off the shelf at random. A small, roughly carved wooden figure. "Hey, wow, so is this a bottle opener? Or..."

"Actually, princess, that's...that's not--" Baba's hand hurriedly covered her fingers. He cleared his throat and Cat felt the pleasant rumble through her back that told her he hovered right behind her. "...ah, it's from Malta. There's a ruins to a fertility cult and locals like to carve--"

Cat abruptly realized what the 'bottle opener' was--or at least was a cheap imitation of--and dropped it back on the shelf in a hurry.

"Oh, ...interesting!" Her voice had a bit too much force behind it and Cat had to wince. _Not that interesting, idiot. Fantastic, now he thinks you're a perv._ Behind her came a chuckle.

She was only stopped from spinning in a new direction by a pair of warm hands that suddenly enveloped her wrists. "Hey, pretty lady." Baba gently turned her back to him. He was grinning, likely at the flames creeping across her face. He studied her eyes and the sharp edge of his smile disappeared by inches into something softer. "Settle down. There's no need to be nervous."

"I'm not--well, I am. It's just, I haven't--" Well she _had_ , a healthy of times, but not after infiltrating a mansion and jumping off a roof and escaping in the rain. Not under the surreal aphrodisiacs of life and death and heists and conspiracy. She wasn't quite sure what was too fast or too forward or anything but this over-riding impulse to run her hands through that hair and--

"No one can find you here, princess. You're safe, I promise," Baba said, misreading the source of her nerves _entirely_. He worked his long fingers into her tense shoulders and inclined his forehead towards hers. Cat couldn't correct him. She did find her shoulders inch down, relaxing at his touch, though as she took a deep breath and breathed in the smell of him, she found his proximity doing something else that sent her nerves singing.

"God, you're freezing. Sit down there and I'll get some towels." Baba made sure she took up the indicated perch on the couch before padding off around the corner.

He reappeared a moment later with a stack of towels and a cup of hot tea he'd magically produced from somewhere. Cat blinked and took the cup as he began to carefully rub at her hair. "Thank you."

"Anything to touch a beautiful woman's hair." Baba's eyes slowly checked the rest of her over and his expression clouded. "You're hurt."

Cat followed his gaze to her knee. There was a small cut that leaked a dribble of blood. “Oh, just a scrape. It’s barely bleeding.” Cat had experienced worse papercuts, really.

But Baba didn’t appear to hear her. He crouched in front of her at the end of the couch and brought her leg up, forcing Cat to lean back on her elbows or send her already-short skirt even shorter. The tips of his fingers were strangely warm as they brushed over her chilled skin. He hooked his thumb gently under her knee and held it still as he patted a clean cloth across it. The warmth of his hand sunk into her. Cat was suddenly aware of the soft pressure of his fingers along her inside thigh, just above the knee.

And that awareness chased the rest of the chill away.

Baba seemed to feel her still. He finished tending to the scrape but didn’t move. His fingers kept playing tiny, small movements on her skin as he looked up, meeting her eyes.

His face was so close to her knee, his breath tickled over her skin as he asked.“Better?”

She was caught the breath on her skin and the molten spark in those brown eyes. Baba’s hands were warm. So warm. Firm and warm and confident as heaven. It cut through Cat, who always felt too cold, too adrift in uncertain futures.

She managed a mute nod. The spark in his eyes caught, turning into something more. Baba tilted his head like a cat. A feather of a kiss brushed just above where his fingers had been and sent heat straight into her core. His breath traced over her skin.

“Does it hurt?” Baba’s voice was hot, but uncertain as a feather. A question that was never about her knee. _Is this too much? Shall I stop? Let's not stop?_

_...Oh, let's not stop._

“No,” Cat whispered. “It feels…nice.”

Baba’s lips trailed hot kisses up the inside of her thigh. Just when Cat thought she couldn’t take it, Baba pulled his lips away. His face was abruptly in front of hers, eyes the color of promise. And then they looked at her like that, in that way he had, as if she was the last star in the sky, and it chased her breath away.

She felt his hands slide under the hitched hem of her dress, warm palms pressed flat against her skin. His fingertips lingering as they encounter lace.

Baba licked his lips slowly and Cat couldn’t help but follow the movement, her own mouth suddenly dry.

“Princess…”

“Baba. Lupin. Mitsunari. You, just--” Cat cut him off. She could see there was a conversation in his eyes she didn’t want to have. Not tonight. “If you don’t shut up right now and—“

Baba didn’t wait to be told. He never did. His mouth caught hers and Cat was too happy to stop thinking. Cat caught one tantalizing glimpse as Baba pulled back, languidly tugging lose his tie. 

“As you wish.” He gave her a wolfish smile before he pressed her firmly against the couch, following her down, filling her senses with him. His lips stayed on hers only long enough to sear words into her bottom lip and begin to whisper soft kisses along her jaw, down her throat. He nipped at her collarbone and Cat breathed out something profane.

One hand stayed on her hip while the other began to nimbly shed clothes.   
\----

Cat was softer than he expected. For such a sharp, brittle mouth, her body was all soft secrets. Baba nibbled at the curve of her belly, worshiping at what was quickly becoming one of his favorite such spots until she began to squirm.

She was so _reactive._ Alive, in ways that coiled a delicious heat in his spine. He explored carefully, watching her face and listening for that expressive breath. A single sigh could nearly undo him.

But Baba wasn't ready to be undone, not yet.

His fingers slid over her most sensitive spot, ghosting agonizingly slow, delicate circles. Circles everywhere but where she wanted it to be. He chuckled as her hips twisted against his hand.

"It's almost midnight," Baba breathed in her ear.

Cat blinked. He loved the way her sharp gaze had gone languid and foggy. "What?"

"Midnight, the end of your month." Baba's fingers didn't waver in their careful exploration between her thighs.

"Wh-Why..." Cat bit back a sound as his touch found a new nerve to torture. "...why are we talking about this now?"

He kissed her ear and lowered his forehead against hers. "Tell me you'll stay, Princess. Tell me you want to stay."

"What?" It was obvious his attentions were more than a little distracting from his words. He slowly slid two fingers deeper in a way that made her breathe a truly impressive combination of obscenities. Her thighs clenched around his hand. "This is so not fair."

"Thirty days with a thief, I thought you knew by now." A luscious smile spread across his lips. Baba slid his lips across her jaw and nipped at her ear before whispering, "I never intend to play fair."

And with that, Baba's breath traveled lower.

"Baba..." Cat whispered.

He paused over the gentle slope of her hip again, tongue darting out to lick at the hollow of her thigh. "Well?"

The pads of his fingers brushed up and Cat shuddered delightfully, a tremor moving beneath his lips. Cat breathed. "I want ...to stay. But the Church--"

 _That goddamn Church is quickly turning me atheist._ Baba brought his head up.

"That's not..." His hand stilled, curled firmly against her flesh as he met her eyes. "..what I asked."

He technically hadn't asked at all. He technically half planned to do whatever it took tonight to keep her here, to keep his name seared into her skin like she was on his. A vicious part of him was certain of that. But the shiver that accompanied her voice told him that Cat didn't seem to mind.

"I want to stay," she said quietly. "I'll...I'll try."

Baba couldn't help it. Joy and relief and a growling desire welled up in his chest. He hid his grin against the soft skin of her thigh. "Try? Let's see if I can provide a little more incentive than 'try.'"

_A goddamn marvel. His marvel._

\---

The sun hit metal and water alike, turning the whole Tokyo waterfront into a silver dish in the morning. From the back patio, Cat could see the city wake up and just behind it all, the tower of the Tres Spades hotel. Cat hunkered down into her blanket and tried very hard not to think about how that surreal sight was threatening to feel something very like home.

The door clattered behind her and a cup, steaming in the cool morning air, appeared in front of her nose.

"Two cream, no sugar," Baba said.

"You _are_ good." Cat inhaled the steam appreciatively, warming her hands against the mug. With only a murder dress to wear, she'd been forced to steal one of Baba's infinite dress shirts. Her hands disappeared in the sleeves and she had too much boob and hips for it to fit right, but it smelled soothingly of mint and thief.

"If you just figured that out now, I'm going to take offense, princess." Rather than the empty chair, Baba claimed the space on the lounger behind her, easily folding around her and snaking a hand around her waist.

Cat groaned even as she settled back against the warmth of his chest. "Three, barely."

Baba chuckled in a way that gave her goosebumps, smug and satisfied. "And last night?"

"...No score." Cat lingered over the thought and studiously hid the heat in her cheeks behind her coffee cup.

"I'll get that ten someday," Baba said agreeably. He pressed a kiss against the back of her head and Cat could feel his hot breath eddy through her hair. "Though to be fair, I think I already got my prize."

 _Pleased, so pleased with himself._ Cat sniffed.

"Already? I thought thieves had more ambition." Cat could think of a few things she still wanted to do with his ridiculous composition of reach and flexibility, herself. And those hands. Such useful hands.

"Heh. That would sound a lot more scandalous if you weren't entirely red as you said it, my love."

 _My love? That's...new. So new. Don't think about how new that is._ The way he said it, low and lips buried in her hair, made her chest flutter. Cat refused the urge to lift her coffee mug higher. "Yeah, well. Temptress really isn't in my skillset."

"I didn't say it wasn't tempting..." A hand snaked under the hem of her shirt and sprawled long fingers over her skin. Cat made a squeak that wasn't quite a protest.

Baba snatched her coffee cup before she could spill it and was in the middle of lifting her onto his lap when the phone trilled.

They both let out simultaneous huffs of air. Baba refused to relinquish his grasp around her waist but he did pause to glance at his phone. Cat saw the familiar number and sighed into his shoulder. The morning _had_ been entirely too quiet.

"Best not to keep Mister Ichinomiya waiting." She winked as she wiggled out of his very determined grasp. "That gets expensive. Trust me, I know."

Baba grumbled and pressed a firm kiss on her lips again before stepping inside to take the call.

Cat hummed to herself as she burrowed back into the blanket. For once, even Eisuke couldn't ruin her mood. She let the contentment sink in along with the warmth from her coffee. Not that much had changed since last night; she was still hunted, still out gunned, but it was different. Not because she and Baba had said what they'd said and decided to be...well, whatever they were. That was _nice (oh god, so nice)_ but...But it was because she wasn't running. It was thirty days and she wasn't running.

Hunted, but not running. Maybe what she should have done from the start.

Low conversation drifted in from the cabin. Auction business, most likely. Or work for Baba, or work for Cat. She idly wondered if she could make a living stringing together code monkey jobs when this was all over. She dug out her smartphone and checked to see what Twitter scandals she'd missed last night.

...and saw there were two emails waiting.

_Huh._

Both the emails were from " _Bl0om_." Emails from dead men didn't scare Cat so much as build an impending sense of dread, anymore. She took a deep breath and opened the newest one.

No text. Just a grainy screencap from a security camera that caught a lanky, familiar figure in a tux weaving his way through a ballroom. The party last night. Cat pursed her lips. The following shots were earlier photos of Baba entering Tres Spades with Soryu. A press photo of Eisuke and Ota. The screenshot was fuzzy, but someone at the Church had put enough together to recognize Baba and who he associated with.

 _Fine, whatever. Why do you think I ran to them in the first place, jackasses?_ Cat snorted. Threatening Baba--or any of the Auction sponsors, really--was stupid if not suicidal. They could handle themselves. She would just let the guys know, call Baba over and--

There was the second email. The image finished downloading and Cat felt words die in her throat.

Tufts of wild hair the same shade and unruly breed as her own. Freckles and clever eyes and Cat's world crashing. A photo of her brother filled the screen. He was on a street, somewhere, but obviously caught off guard. Unsmiling, unsure, glaring hesitantly into the camera. Two strangers flanked him and smiled brightly for the camera, smiles glinting almost as sharp as the Church of Friends masks worn around their necks.

_Oh my god, Haru._

Her brother. Her baby brother. Was that a bruise? Were they grabbing him a bit too tight? Was he surprised or was he _hurt_?

There was no message attached to the email. There didn't need to be. The image said it all: _we can take what you care about._

Still, Cat took a deep breath to call for Baba. Fine, they could handle this. She wasn't alone anymore and they could--

\--do what? Cat realized what the first photos of Baba and the others had meant. If they'd put together the sponsors then that meant they could have put together the auctions. And if they put together the auctions that meant they could do...

...Exactly what Cat had done. Only the Church had _Bishop,_ whoever he was, and that was much, much worse. They weren't threatening violence this time--the Church had to have figured out that didn't work. They were threatening invasion, exposure.

And protecting from that was _Cat's_ responsibility. The unspoken clause she'd developed that had nothing to do with the auction: they protected her, she protected them.

And Cat had said she wasn't running anymore.

_We can take what you care about._

Cat pressed the phone to her forehead and tried to remember how to breathe.

\---

Eisuke had a laundry list of orders and updates--both regarding what Baba had pilfered from the Church party last night, and on the up-coming auction. By the time he got off the phone, Cat had abandoned the patio. He found her in the bathroom, shimmying into her sparkling murder dress.

Baba hesitated at the door long enough to admire the view, which was a new treat but one he was quite certain he would never grow tired of.

"We're headed back to the penthouse?" Cat asked without turning around.

Baba nodded, momentarily fascinated by the way she did little hops around the bathroom as she tried to get the dress snugged up over her bra. He stepped forward to help her with the zipper. "I've got a spare car in the garage. Soryu's sending someone to the mansion to get the other car and your stuff."

"Thank god. I need real clothes."

"You look perfect to me, beautiful--" Baba stopped as Cat turned. Her smile was soft, but pinned at the edges, strain ghosting at her eyes. "Hey, you alright?"

"Just tired," Cat admitted then crossed her arms. "I didn't get a lot of sleep last night, if you recall."

Baba studied her, unable to quite pick out what was off about that entirely true statement. He considered pressing it, but then was distracted as she wiggled under his arm. "Well," Baba huffed. "What kind of scoundrel stole your beauty rest?"

"The best kind," Cat said with a fondness that made Baba's heart feel too big for his chest.

She was stronger than she looked, but more fragile than she acted. He guided them out to the car and resolved to take more care with her, her body, her heart. To take more time tonight soothing away those worries.

They had time. Baba intended to make sure they had all the time in the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...Bet you thought this fic was dead.  <3


	18. The mistakes you'd make again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a chat with Eisuke, Cat leaves Tres Spades to find her little brother.
> 
> \---  
> Cat gnawed on her thoughts. "You have a family, don't you Mr. Ichinomiya?"
> 
> If it was possible for the weather to change in a room, a small blizzard formed in the air around Eisuke's chair. "What," Eisuke bit the words. "...kind of question is that?"  
> \---

 "Is this really necessary?" Eisuke barely looked at her as she entered the office.

"Depends," Cat said as she cheerily plopped herself in a chair. "Anything in that laptop you want to keep private?"

Eisuke gave her an icey look before he slid his laptop across the desk. "You have five minutes."

 _All I need,_ Cat thought miserably.

Cat's hands quickly settled on the keys and she chattered as she got to work. "You know, Mr. Ichinomya, as of today I'm not on your payroll anymore."

"And?"

"And my rates are pretty damn high after a month at Ichinomiya Group." Cat flashed a smile.

Eisuke snorted. "If our deal is concluded, where's the data you've been holding over our heads?"

"Hum. Depends. Where's my money?"

They exchanged matching reptilian smiles across the office.

_God, that man is an asshole._

No one won a stare off with Eisuke Ichinomiya, and Cat didn't have time to try. She broke first and shrugged back to her work."Your data's released as of today. I'll delete anything I have. And don't worry, I'll do this for free. You can owe me a _favor._ "

That barb bought her a couple extra minutes as Eisuke responded with cutting insults that would have destroyed anyone with a normal sense of self. Cat wasn't normal right now. She grimly focused on the task at hand and not, say, what came next.

Cat typed faster.

\---

Baba had disappeared again soon after they arrived back at the Penthouse that morning, pulled into an appraisal with Ota after a large number of suggestive comments about Cat's dress and how they'd spent the night. He only paused long enough to brush the hair from Cat's cheek and place a kiss on her forehead. "Dinner, tonight."

It wasn't a question, but Cat answered it anyway. "Sure."

"And," Baba hesitated a moment. Seeming to want to say something more. But then he, uncharacteristically, swallowed his words. "Nevermind. Are you alright, pretty lady?"

It was the fifth time this morning he asked, and it was the fifth time this morning Cat reached for the brightest, most earnest smile she could fabricate. "After last night? I'm fine."

And the fifth time this morning she silently added: _Sorry, Baba._

"Good. Stay out of trouble." Baba still looked skeptical, but he slid on his hat with a wink. "And maybe I'll steal you some flowers."

"Chocolate."

"As my lady wishes."

She had her laptop open nearly before Baba cleared the door. It was a simple matter to check the news. No public record of a missing person, no accident reports or public posts from her family. Still, just to be sure, she pulled out a beaten card from her belongings.

Detective Ayase had been _delighted_ to hear from Ms. Ada Lovelace again.

Cat had just barely avoided agreeing to a coffee date, but she had managed to get off the phone after confirming it: no police records having anything to do with one Haru Tachibana. He wasn't missing or killed or a victim of any crime on record. Nothing from her family, even, besides the outstanding missing persons report on her.

She could have, of course, confirmed all this better through Detective Kishi, but Kishi also worked for Eisuke, and Cat had a bad habit of playing these things out in her head, testing for future issues.

A habit that made her a good programmer. A rotten human being, but a good programmer.

So she was sure of how it would go. She could tell the boys, and the threat to them was negligible. They'd shut down the Church through an exemplary show of force and cunning, most likely. Effective and excessive, that was their style. Problem solved.

But she had no idea where Haru was, or if he was entangled in the Church. She was certain Baba would likely lock her away safe in the Penthouse until it was done. All the explaining and talking in the world wasn't going to change that. And she couldn't stay in the penthouse. Not if Haru could get caught in the middle of whatever the auction sponsors' idea of a solution was.

She had to find her baby brother, verify he was safe with her own eyes, get him out of the crossfire. If the Church was making her choose between the bidders and her baby brother, it...well, it wasn't a choice.

Her brother's life or hers. She could only worry about one right now. Which meant Baba and the others couldn't know, not yet. She'd take care of Haru first.

_Anyway, last time you asked for help, half your friends got killed._

There was that, too.

Cat said she was _fine_ ; she never said she was _ok_.

\----

She finished the info dump and stole a glance. Eisuke read notes off a tablet by the window as he sipped a rather fancy-looking coffee.

 _"If anyone understands family, it's Eisuke."_ Baba had said something like that.

Cat gnawed on her thoughts. "You have a family, don't you Mr. Ichinomiya?"

If it was possible for the weather to change in a room, a small blizzard formed in the air around Eisuke's chair. "What," Eisuke bit the words. "...kind of question is that?"

"Course you do, right. everyone has family. The famous Ichinomiyas. Must have been nice, I mean, my parents were only an engineer and a teacher but--" Cat just managed to stop herself from babbling. She studied her hands on the keyboard before she continued typing. "I just wondered if you had siblings you cared about. Brother, sister. Dog."

The silence chilled further until Cat risked a glance up. Eisuke had his eyes on some distant point outside the window, coffee limp in his hand. "...I do. Why?"

"You do?" Cat was surprised.

"A sister." Eisuke was not in a sharing mood.

"A sister. Right. I got two brothers. Sister would have been nice." Cat tried to keep her voice as neutral as Eisuke's. It was the only way to keep her own worry and dread from making her scream. "Did you ever have to...give anything up for her? Sacrifice a business deal or money or..."

_A lover's trust. Again. The chance to be happy. Again._

"...Never mind. Stupid question," Cat finished lamely.

The keyboard clacked listlessly into the silence. Cat was halfway absorbed back into the work when Eisuke spoke again.

"Ridiculous. If you give up something, it just means you were too cowardly, too stupid, or too weak to hold on to it," Eisuke's voice was flat.

"Yeah, yeah, I forgot who I was asking," Cat mumbled and dropped her eyes.

"But, that includes people." Eisuke continued, then a little quieter: "...Especially family."

Cat startled."...What?"

"Sacrifice is for the dim-witted and the useless. Self sacrifice is even worse. Something or someone belongs to you, you don't give up one thing for another. It's a false problem."

When Cat looked up, Eisuke was drinking his coffee with the same nonchalant arrogance that didn't match the words coming out of his mouth. Hard, dark eyes flicked up and considered her over the rim of his coffee cup.

"The people I respect don't accept giving up anything," Eisuke said.

Cat expected a lot of ridiculous things out of the CEO's mouth, but she hadn't expected encouragement.

_A false problem. Is that what I have?_

"Don't look so stupid. Makes me nervous trusting you with my data."

Cat realized her mouth was open and closed it abruptly. Frowned. "You know, Mister Ichinomiya, you're a piece of work."

"As if I need the approval of a dumpster-diving thief," Eisuke dismissed it. "Your five minutes are up, done?"

"Done here," Cat straightened and remembered her plan. "But I need to visit the server room to make sure nothing new is going to propagate."

Eisuke frowned. "You were supposed to secure all that weeks ago."

"And the fact that you think info sec is something you do just once is _exactly_ why I was able to crack your whole system."

Eisuke really did have a most impressive glare. "I'll call Kenzaki to show you down."

"I think I know my way around the hotel by now."

"My hotel. You need an escort."

Cat resisted the urge to groan. "My protection officially ended yesterday, Mister Ichinomiya. You're a busy man. I don't need babysitters."

"I didn't say your opinion mattered," Eisuke grumbled, already dialing his cell. "You've never seen the thief angry."

 _Baba, angry?_ Cat raised a brow at that, but within minutes, the hotel manager appeared. When Cat got up to go, Eisuke shoved a card in her hands.

Cat squinted at it. Pre-loaded cash card. Probably with anonymous funds, if Cat knew Ichinomiya. "What's this?"

"Your fee." Eisuke gave her a flinty smile. "I don't owe anyone favors."

\---

Kenzaki had lead her down to the server room in the basement of the hotel but, thankfully, hadn't followed her into the cramped racks. She was silently grateful that it wasn't her usual Ice Dragon detail--one, they were a lot more meticulous than the hotel manager, and two, she'd rather liked the lady enforcers Soryu had assigned her after the last incident. She didn't want to get them in trouble again.

And Cat would be doing a lot of trouble today. She just wanted to live to apologize for it.

She used a terminal in the server room to send off her last few emails. One to Takkun, of course. Eisuke's words stuck in her head as she added a few things to his email.

And then it was time to send one to each of the auction sponsors. Verifying that the blackmail data she'd pulled over a month ago was destroyed. If they really wanted to verify it, they'd have her laptop.

_Was it only a month ago?_

Cat told herself all this was just to get it off her plate. Eisuke was already harassing her about it, after all. Her thirty days were up and if she was going to be staying around the penthouse, she didn't want to be their blackmailer anymore.

She really hoped she'd be staying around the penthouse.

But the other voice in her head, that was cold and clear and sounded too much like Eisuke at his most calculating, said it over and over again: _just in case. Just in case. Tie up loose ends before playing martyr, how efficient._

_Shut up, Eisuke._

One of those emails, of course, had stymied her longer than the others. She backspaced everything she typed.

_I'm sorry--_

No. You don't get to say that yet.

_Something came up that I need to--_

No. Don't worry him.

_I'll be back--_

No. Christ. That's what definitely-not-coming-back people say.

_If I don't come back--_

Oh god, no.

Baba was the one good at this. Words. People. Feelings. Honesty. Everything. Cat saw the screen swim and wiped her eyes hard. The only thing Cat was good at was code.

After a moment, she found the end of the verification code and added a few simple lines of script.

She stuck at it line _ten._

He'd probably never see it, but it was the truest language she had.

She closed down the terminal, checked the door again where Kenzaki probably waited, then walked through the server room to the unused fire exit. Her Ice Dragon guards would have thought to check it; hotel managers did not.

Cat slipped into the stairwell, walked out of Tres Spades and promised, somehow, that she'd be coming back.

\---

_while ( i.alive ) {_

_i.love(you);_

_}_

\-----

Cat moved through the city with her hoodie up. It felt odd, riding subways and crossing streets alone again. The first time in a month she hadn't had a sweet-talking thief or cranky hired gun hanging over her shoulder. Quieter. Blessedly, cursedly quieter. She felt exposed and she felt free and she felt miserable.

She tried very hard not to think of Baba.

 _I'm coming back. Don't get melodramatic. I'm coming back._ Cat repeated it to herself. She just needed to make sure Haru wasn't wrapped up in the Church and she'd get away. There was no chance of sneaking back into Tres Spades before anyone noticed she was gone, but she could explain herself, explain about her family, and maybe Baba wouldn't hate her for lying. Again.

If not...well, she still had the fake ID in her bag. The weight of it made her chest hurt.

It's not easy to go home when your family thinks you might be dead. The Tachibana family lived in a modest flat in a safe but unpopular nook of the city. Cat watched the entrance for a while until she was certain Haru wasn't home, though Cat thought she caught sight of her mother paying bills at the desk by the window. She didn't go in.

She didn't see any sign of the Church either. That was a good sign.

But if he wasn't missing and he wasn't at home, that had to mean Haru was still in school. Did that mean he was working with the Church willingly? The thought gnawed at Cat's fears.

She arrived at the high school just as clubs were letting out. Cat tried to be cautious, head low. She kept herself lost in the stream of milling students until she spotted a familiar beanpole with a mess of freckles and bedhead.

Then Cat forgot every ounce of common sense and flung herself through the crowd. "Haru!"

Her brother's eyes went wide as plates when he looked up from his phone. "K-Katsuko?!"

Cat flung her arms around her brother. She indulged in in a good ten minutes of emotional messiness--no, she wasn't dead--can't say why--are mom and dad ok?--no, she couldn't come home yet--sorry, Haru, sorry, sorry, sorry--I'm not crying you're crying--jeezus stop you're hugging too hard--until she finally peeled herself off her brother.

"Are you ok? Did they hurt you?" She urgently scrutinized his face for poor treatment but all she found was confusion.

"They..? Shouldn't I be asking you that? Who are you talking about?"

"The Church guys. The photo--" Cat pulled out her phone and pulled up the email.

Haru blinked owlishly. "Oh, the selfie weirdos. Did they really post it somewhere?"

Cat felt her stomach drop. "Selfie?"

"They were weirdos." Her brother shrugged with an impressive level of obliviousness only a teenage boy could muster. "Their whole group had a booth set up across the street for an entire week.I think even the principal was getting annoyed with them. I was walking home the other day and two of them like, grabbed me and started trying to tell the 'good word.' Then they mentioned you and I got pissed because I thought they musta saw the flyers when you disappeared and were some kinda ambulance chasers or something--whoa, wait, you didn't join a cult, right?"

"I wish," Cat said with a creeping sense of dread. She was trying to make the pieces fit, make sense of the Church's plan. "So you're saying they really didn't hurt or threaten you--or Mom? Dad?"

"No. They got pushy, took a photo--s'why I look so pissed--gave me a pamphlet and bolted." Haru stopped and peered worried into Cat's face. "You're scaring me. What's going on, Katsu? Mom and Dad are...well. Can't we go home and--"

But Cat was already backing up as a horrible notion set in.

"You didn't see me. Don't tell Mom and Dad and..." She winced as she stumbled in the crowd of students. Too many people, too close. Too late, too close. "...just. Be careful, Haru."

She turned and shoved her way out of the parking lot. She heard her brother holler something, but didn't stop. She hit the street and nearly died twice as she dove into Tokyo traffic, bolting across the street.

To put distance between herself and her family. _Shouldn't have come, shouldn't have come, god I'm an idiot and--_

Every other move the Church had made had been so brutally direct. Threatened her. Killed people. Tried to kill her. She'd gotten so _used_ to them being stupid brutes, compared to the criminals she'd adopted. Not manipulative like Eisuke, not clever like Baba or disciplined like Soryu.

So she didn't even _think_ when things started to get more complex, when they threatened both the auctions and her brother...had assumed it was another clumsy--if effective--threat. Choose the bidders or choose her family. They'd target the other.

It wasn't a threat. It was bait. Bait to draw her out, and bait to know where she would go. Bait to ensure she didn't tell Baba or the others where she was going. The Church-- _Bishop_ , more precisely--had figured out how to get her attention and separate her from her protection.

The boys would have saw through it, she thought grimly. Not that it mattered.

Because she really was an idiot. Because even if she'd saw through it--and really, hadn't she known at some level this was what the Church wanted?--she would have come anyway. Because she couldn't stand another body in her dreams. Because it was Haru.

The worst mistakes were the ones you knew you'd make again.

 _"I'd do anything for my brothers,"_ she'd confessed through a dressing room door.

Which was why she needed to run, right now, and get as far away from her little brother before the trap shut. Cat's eyes spun over the crowd. Option A: try to make it to the train and Tres Spades. Option B: Find the closest, busiest coffee shop, somewhere public, where no one could touch her without causing a scene. Option C: she could call Baba and...something.

 _Baba._ Even if he was furious, Option C sounded like heaven right now. She felt for her phone. She belatedly thought to slow down and fumble with her other hand for the taser Soryu had given her.

Her fingers had just closed around it when something shoved her and sent her stumbling off the sidewalk into a side street.

She almost had time to bring her hand up before something pricked her painfully on the meaty curve of her neck and the world went sideways.

Almost.  _Option D._

Cat thought hopelessly, as the world went liquid, how it was _always Option D._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It struck me early on in this fic that Cat loathes Eisuke so much because they are--juuuuuust a little--similar when it comes to certain things. Mostly: family, regret, secrets.
> 
> I hope I explored Cat's motivations and/or reasons for being stupid well enough here! Last chapter ended kind of wtf-y and wanted to make sure it was understandable why Cat was being...well, Cat. Even a Cat in love does these kinds of things.
> 
> Next: Angry!Baba! Angry!Takkun! (Wow do I need to tag this as an LLFTX crossover.) Oh god.


	19. That damn webcam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a.k.a., Soryu Oh has very trying friends. 
> 
> Baba is not OK and the bidders meet a deadman.

Soryu Oh was told he had a reputation for hating women.

He did not hate women, per say. That would be like hating traffic or inflation. But like traffic and inflation, he just simply didn't understand the rhythm of their occurrence. And things he didn't understand, he didn't need. And the life of a mob boss--especially one trying to fight for the soul of the Ice Dragons as a whole--was quite busy enough without unnecessary, unknowable things.

Some women were more unnecessary and unknowable than others. See: Katsuko Tachibana.

Ever since they'd pulled her out of the alley dumpster, she'd been a headache. He'd been tempted to tell Eisuke several times that no blackmail threat was worth this, and that was before she introduced conspiracy nonsense into their lives. But even Soryu was forced to respect her strange grit. She reminded him less of a Cheshire Cat and more a feral alley stray, though he would never say so (especially not in front of Ota). He had no idea how Baba handled her or what he saw that was worth the hassle.

But then she'd had the gall to save his men. That made her just as unknowable but a little less unnecessary to the Ice Dragons.

Still: unknowable woman. Traffic and calamity and cat scratch all in one.

So he found himself unsurprised when Eisuke called him to say she'd disappeared from the hotel. Gave staff the slip while on an errand downstairs.

Though he couldn't see why she'd run now, it really wasn't alarming to Soryu. It was past the thirty days, there was no obligation for protection for the auction sponsors. And if Cat had planned to really disclose her blackmail or the auctions, it would have been done ages ago. But there was the matter of the creepy cult and the technobabble disaster she brought on them.

And, of course, there was the matter of one very stupid thief.

"How far away are you?" Eisuke asked.

Soryu grunted as Inui slid into the driver's seat and put the car into motion. "About fifteen minutes."

"I'll wait ten before calling Baba."

"You expect he's going to get irrational?"

"I expect that you'll arrive before he kills me," Eisuke said with a snort. "Don't be late."

Soryu pocketed his phone and instructed Inui to drive faster.

\---

"--and I don't need to explain my employees to you, any of you."

"Not asking for an explanation, Boss. Just a reason."

Soryu heard Eisuke's low voice and Baba's dangerously light reply coming from the lounge as he stepped off the elevator. Otherwise, it was a little too eerily quiet in the Penthouse. Soryu loosened the clasp on his holster as he stepped in.

The auction sponsors were all there and standing in a strange bubble of tension. Ota hovered next to Baba, his hand hovering towards the thief but seeming too hesitant to land. Kishi, the damn detective, was even awake for once. He slouched against the couch behind Eisuke, pretending to smoke though Soryu could see it was a ruse: the detective was a breadth away from drawing his own gun.

At first, Soryu couldn't see the cause of alarm. Eisuke and Baba stood at the center of everyone's attention. Eisuke stood with his arms crossed; Baba, hands slouched in his jacket with his head tilted back. Typical.

But then Soryu got a good look at the thief. And his hand found the butt of his handgun.

There were a few truths about the strange collective of business associates that ran the black market auctions at Tres Spades.

One, no one out-maneuvered Eisuke Ichinomiya.

Two, no one crossed the Ice Dragons.

Three, no one, no one ever wanted to see Baba angry.

It was easy to forget that third rule, as Baba was rarely truly upset. He was smiles and winks and an infuriating supply of quips and jokes. The nice one. The funny one. _The fool_ , was Soryu's personal favorite. A laughing shadow, a flashy distraction. At a glance, he was a composition of that today.

But then Soryu read the way he stood a little straighter, shoulders held tight, hands soft at his side. He wasn't wearing a tie and his face drawn, too pale. He held a smile way a gun cocked a bullet. A look, bright and cold as steel, focused directly on Eisuke.

 _Danger._ Gunpowder just waiting for a match. Soryu didn't need to be a gang boss to read that. Even without knowing Baba's extensive background, he would have known to be wary.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Ota tried for what Soryu gathered was not the first time. "She's a kitty and everyone knows wandering cats always come back and--"

"What did you say to her, Boss?" Baba ignored Ota. His tone was light, but wrong. That teetering quality as if he's not quite decided which side of that sickle-sharp smile to fall on. "Did you tell her to go? No use for her now that you had your data back?"

Eisuke shrugged. "You know she released the data after she left here. Her time was up. Maybe she wanted to go." Soryu noted he did not, in fact, say what they'd talked about.

"You knew she was acting off," Baba didn't take his eyes off Eisuke. "And you let her go anyway."

"I did." A tilt of the head said it all. "So did you."

And _there_ was the match. _Dammit, Eisuke._

A twitch rippled through Baba's frame and Soryu's gun cleared it's leather holster. He saw Baba pause and his chin incline a fraction at the sound. "Are you planning on shooting me, Soryu?"

"Are you planning on needing a bullet?"

"I'm definitely reconsidering my business associates."

"Is that what's going to help Cat?" Eisuke asked.

Baba's smile twitched again. "I imagine you want to _avoid_ using her name since this is--"

"Would you two miscreants settle down." Detective Kishi finished his cigarette, ignoring the gun in Soryu's hand. "I ain't gonna deal with the paperwork if you kill each other. Especially now that the kid is in the wind. Pain in the ass."

"The bigger point is finding Baba's kitty, right?" Ota chimed in with a bored tone. As an artist he was the strict noncombatant of the group, but he seemed the least flummoxed by the rising tempers and waving weapons. Artistic temperaments. "We are going to try to find her, yeah? That's why Eisuke slipped her that card?"

"Card?" Baba echoed and Eisuke huffed away the insinuation that he cared.

"Her fee. I had a trace put on it. If she withdraws the funds anywhere, we'll know." His frown tightened as Baba blinked at him. "What? You'd have to have been blind to miss she was planning to do something stupid."

"Blind," Baba muttered glumly. All the threat seemed to slide out his shoulders and Soryu eased his grip on his gun a hair.

The thief took a labored breath. Violent energy seemed to convert into anxious energy on the spot and Baba began to pace. "You have to be alive to use the card, though. What if these guys find her--"

"Then we catch them using the card." Eisuke gave a confident shrug. "It's money. No one ignores money."

"Uh, what is..." Ota said.

"Let's focus on finding the kid before the murderers do, maybe." Mamoru buried his sarcasm in a new cigarette. "Check her belongings, question her family."

"Guys..."

"We should have slipped a tracker in her clothes," Soryu mused and Baba nodded wholeheartedly before he had the chance to look guilty about tagging his girlfriend.

"Collar," Ota offered distractedly. "But guys--"

"The Ice Dragons can--"

"Guys!" Ota was staring at the wall behind them. "Why don't we ask him?"

Silently, the auction sponsors turned to the monitor.

Instead of blank state, a very large webcam image filled the screen. Mostly dominated by a young guy with shiffy blond hair, a patterned scarf, and a very, very surly expression.

And Soryu thought, not for the first time, that they really needed to remove that damn webcam from the penthouse lounge.

Their intruder's scowl deepened as he got their attention and the audio was crisp. "You got exactly five seconds to answer me before I ruin you. _What did you **shitheads** do to Cat?_ "

"Who the hell is that?" Eisuke hissed.

Silence. Then a short, barking laugh came from Baba, making everyone jump. Soryu turned to see the first genuine smile all day tug at the thief's lips. His eyes glittered as he inclined his head to the screen.

"I can't be sure, but I think that's a _dead man_." Baba studied the screen. "Takkun, is it?"

"And who the fuck are you?" Takuto snapped from the screen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a shorter chapter because I...really wanted to end on Takkun, who wouldn't?
> 
> Next chapter: More Takuto bonding with the boys! It's like poor social skills playtime over here. And Cat has an unexpected friend.


	20. A Cat Finds Religion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bidders visit Le Renard Noir for thief bonding time. The Church hosts two new converts and Cat finds religion makes EVERYTHING worse.

Soryu sent Baba down with Ota to meet Cat's 'deadman switch' contact at a noodle shop in Ikebukuro. Probably, Baba suspected, because Soryu didn't trust Baba alone with Eisuke until they had Cat back.

Fair enough. Baba wasn't sure he trusted himself right now either.

Turned out, Cat's friend was nearly as paranoid as Cat. Takuto--Baba had quickly been corrected by the surly hacker that only _friends_ got to call him Takkun--refused to come to Tres Spades, or any of the locations Eisuke suggested. Smart, because all the suggestions had either been owned by Eisuke or the Ice Dragons. Instead, Baba and Ota found themselves hesitating in the doorway of a noodle shop that could only kindly be called _quaint. Le Renard Noir_ was small and old but somehow impeccably tidy in a slouching sort of way.

The name, of course-- _The Black Fox_ , sharing a name with a well known thieves ring in town--was anything but subtle but really, The Great Lupin didn't have any room to talk. He could play ignorant for a night. Baba kept a private smile to himself, and the ridiculousness of the situation helped steady the anxious part of his mind that was counting the minutes since Cat disappeared.

They saw their hacker perched at the edge of the counter, hunkered behind a laptop with a familiarity that said a lot. Ota lead the way over while Baba tracked three--no four-- inconspicuous eyes on them. He quietly kept track of those while Takuto grumbled at them."You're the underlings?"

"Something like that," Ota said dryly. "Baba says you're a friend of Cat's?"

Takuto gave a derisive snort at that and buried his head back behind the laptop. "Her phone lost signal shortly after she left the school," Takuto says, barely speaking over the clatter of his keyboard. "It's not pinging any local wifi either."

"You're saying you can't find her?" Ota sagged.

"Tch. Were you even listening? Be quiet a minute."

First accomplice. Big guy in plaid down the counter kept sending skittish glances their way. Radiated more worry than hostility. Baba made sure to catch his eye on the next glance and give him a reassuring, if toothful, smile.

Keys fell suddenly silent. Baba looked over to see Takuto curled over his keyboard, fists clenched. "They got her."

Despite having expected it, Baba's stomach dropped. He distracted himself with continuing to pick out Takuto's obvious accomplices in the shop.

Two. Handsome, master of the universe type in the booth by the door watched them cooly from over a drink. Wearing a leather jacket but that suit underneath screamed government worker a mile off. Might have had an intimidating presence if Baba didn't already work with Eisuke and Soryu for a living. Give him a couple years, though.

Three was across from two in the booth, and the polar opposite. Red-haired, slender college kid hadn't taken eyes off Ota since they'd came in, though the look was more worshipful than sinister. Looked like an artistic type, maybe he was a fan? The student caught Baba looking and rewarded him with a bright, cheeky smile. _Oh yeah, definitely an Ota type._

"How do you know?" Ota asked Takuto.

"Because I'm smarter than you," Takuto deadpanned. When Ota gave him an equally bored look, the hacker grumbled. "I picked up a whole slew of unregistered burner phones in the area at the same time. Wasn't a hard leap to track them from there."

Four. Baba was fairly certain the cook at the stove was in on it too, but he was the most subtle of the bunch. Older, closer to Baba's age, shaggy hair and somehow familiar. But his movements were so casual and his face always remained--oh so coincidentally--hidden, Baba couldn't put a finger on it. Hmm. Screamed experience, enough to be cautious.

Cat's social circle did keep getting more and more interesting.

Ota tilted his head. "So we know where they took her?"

"I know where they _went_. If Cat stayed with them from there, that's your problem," Takuto said gruffly. His shoulders hunched into his hoodie again, troubled. "Still don't know why she trusted you. You guys better be as good as she thought you were."

"She talked about us?" Baba's meticulously-crafted inattention broke at that.

"Just about the annoyances."

"Annoyance? Me?" Baba placed fingertips to his chest. "Lies, I'm a _delight_."

Takuto's eyes narrowed. "Ahhh, you're _that_ one." And Ota snickered at that.

Baba was _deliriously_ curious what Cat had said about _that one_ , but a different thought intruded first. "...do you think she intended to keep running?" It was a question that had his worries prodded like a sore tooth. Hurtful and incessant.

Takuto's expression, if anything, became only more dull. "Wow. You really are a fucking idiot."

Baba gave a half-hearted smile. "Probably. You think--"

"Ten."

Takuto was already turning back to his laptop, despite having made Baba's heart stutter at the number.

"..what'd you say?" Baba asked faintly.

"Ten. Line ten. Read your frickin' email all the way through sometime. Even a toddler could read that code."

Baba resisted the urge to dig through his phone right there. "She left a--"

"It's the only reason I'm helping you assholes," Takuto didn't bother to look up. "Don't get her wrapped up in your shit."

"Did she know what _you_ do?" Baba tried not to be defensive. Failed, but tried.

Takuto slanted him a disgruntled look. Shrugged again. "Maybe suspected. She's not stupid. Cat's ...a friend. _We_ woulda had her out of there by now if she hadn't made me promise not to."

Baba rifled through a stew of unhealthy emotions before settling on determined optimism. "Looks like you've got some good friends yourself," Baba eyed at the man behind the counter. "Four of them. Pretty obvious though."

"Only four? And you call yourself a thief." A smug smirk pulled at Takuto's lips that reminded Baba so much of Cat that his chest ached. "You missed one."

Takuto nodded towards a quiet girl wiping down counters. She glanced up and colored prettily, though Baba didn't miss the sharp look in her eyes. He hummed.

"Her? She looks like a junior librarian."

"Curator, actually." Takuto said, then his frown deepened. "And she's _taken_ , stop that you perv."

"Stop what?"

"Looking with that stupid look on your face."

"That's his usual face," Ota offered helpfully.

"That goes for you, too," Takuto eyed him and Ota did his best angelic impression. Takuto growled and threw his hood up like a closed door. "Just go fucking help her. If anything happens--"

"It won't," Baba said with more harshness than he intended. He swallowed the lump in his throat and met Takuto's eyes firmly. "She's...important to us too."

Ota made an amused sound under his breath, but the way the harsh lines in Takuto's face softened told him enough. Baba wondered if Cat always had a knack for taming thieves, but that thought came tagged with so many jagged, terrifying edges that he shied from it.

_We're coming, princess._

\---

The first time Cat woke up, it was dark and she wondered why her mouth tasted of motor oil and gravel. She's almost positive she didn't vomit.

The second time Cat woke up, she managed to crack open her eyes and see a smear of concrete that immediately sent her into a weird dream about a swimming pool.

The third time Cat woke up, she really wished she hadn't.

The only thing worse than getting drugged is trying to convince your body to be undrugged. Everything was numb and everything hurt simultaneously and Cat didn't think that was _possible_ but here she was. This was the kind of day she was having. Her eyes were crusty and closed, her cheek pulsed with pain and her right leg was asleep. She hoped it was asleep. Cat wiggled her toes hopefully. Toes, check.

She ran similar diagnostics slowly up the rest of her body until she dared to crack open her eyes again. She still saw concrete, but her eyes focused and she could make out the sparse outline of metal shelves. A shuttered light. Crossbeams. A storeroom? No windows. Her wrists hurt. Why did her wrists hurt? A zip tie?

Oh. Fuck.

Diagnostics finally reached her brain. Her memory caught up with her and Cat twitched off the concrete in a panic. The storeroom swam around her, but righted itself after a moment. Her hands were zip-tied to a heavy set of metal shelves, at about chest level, but her feet were free. She gave her hand an experimental twist but the plastic just cut into her wrists for her effort.

The Church. This had to be somewhere belonging to the Church. Where? How long had she been out? Because she'd been _out,_ so out that they'd had to have drugged her but...why bother? Why was she still alive? That meant--

"Ms. Lovelace?" A querulous voice derailed her. Cat turned her head--slowly this time--to realize she wasn't alone.

"Detective Ayase?" Cat's mouth dropped open. The skinny detective didn't appear to be in a much better state than her. He sat across the room, hands bound behind a pipe running along a wall. Instead of drugged it appeared he'd been subdued by medical application of brass knuckles. His face bled from several cuts and bottom lip swollen. If before he looked like a meerkat, now he looked like roadkill.

Regardless of all that, Ayase gave her such a heartbreakingly relieved smile. "Thank goodness, when they brought you in here I thought you were...ah, well, you were sleeping."

Such a delicate way to put it.

"Not dead," Cat resisted the urge to add ' _yet_ '. "What are you doing here, Detective?"

"Police business," Ayase said with too few details and too much concern. "It appears the Church of Friends may be involved in very suspicious business tied to the Great Lupin."

"Lupin. Wow. You don't say."

"I know, right? I always loved the Church's Christmas programs!" Ayase was startlingly chipper for the state of his face and the state of their situation. Who knew meerkat detectives were so resilient. "But you, Ms. Lovelace, how...?"

"That is...a story. For another time." Cat realized time was another thing she was distinctly fuzzy on. "Wait, we just talked on the phone this morning. How long have you been here?"

"Yesterday morning," Ayase corrected. "I lost some time there for a bit but I think I've been in here about twelve hours? It looks like about dawn now." The watch on his wrist was broken and partially blocked by zip tie so the detective contorted his neck to squint at it.

"...yesterday?" Cat echoed faintly. When she'd found Haru ( _thank god, thank god he wasn't here. He wasn't here, right?_ ) he was just leaving school, so late afternoon. She'd been out that long? What the _hell_ had they hit her with?

...and why?

The door groaned open and the answer walked in.

\---

"We got an address," Ota announced as they returned to the penthouse. "Let's go get us our kitty and--"

Baba took in the cold in the air a beat before Ota did. Soryu and Eisuke looked impassive as usual, but Mamoru slouched behind them, working out his displeasure on the stub of his cigarette. "What happened?" Baba asked carefully.

"There's been a development," Soryu said. "Our plan has changed."

"You're not going to like it," Eisuke said cooly.

\---

"Are you quite comfortable, Miss Tachibana?"

This was turning out to be the weirdest dire peril Cat had found herself in. And that was saying a lot, lately.

She fidgeted uneasily on the stool they'd put her on. The men that'd entered the storeroom hadn't made any introductions, and they'd certainly not released Cat and Ayase, but they'd set about bringing in a chair for Cat. She'd had her wrists released from the shelving to only be rebound as she sat tenderly on a low stool. A young guy, who looked more like a stylish youth pastor than a kidnapper, sat on a chair opposite from her and attempted small talk.

Ayase, Cat was distressed to see, wasn't getting quite the same consideration. The other man, thin and tidy in a pinstripe suit, wasted no time in repositioning the detective's arms over his head, attached to the ceiling by a length of chain. Ayase made a few weak attempts to reaffirm his status as a _officer of the law_ but that'd been quickly stopped with a rather filthy looking cloth to the mouth. The suit began mutely unpacking tools from a duffel bag.

So Ayase was strung up while Cat looked ready to sit down for tea. The difference in treatment was only feeding the panic in Cat's stomach.

She belatedly realized she'd been asked a question and turned her attention back to not-a-youth-pastor. "Uhm. My wrists hurt so if you want to remove these ties..."

"My apologies. Just try to bear with us for a bit longer." The man smiled softly. He reached out and cupped her face with cold fingers, paying no attention as Cat jerked. "I understand you've had a trying day."

Cat could take the weird civility, but his touch was triggering some deep-seated, terrifying revulsion. She said the first accusation that came to hand. "So which one of you is Bishop?"

The man in the suit looked over with a cold expression, while the not-a-pastor just smiled. "Ah, so direct. That's refreshing. I suppose that saves me the questions to confirm how much you know. Introductions are in order, of course. The gentleman behind me is Mr. Saito. Say hello, Yuu."

The man named Saito did not, in fact, say hello.

Creepy pastor continued on. "Of course, that Bishop is simply a daemon program, but if you are looking for Bishop's _creator,_ father if you will, that would be me. You may call me Nakano."

"You're...a hacker?" Cat had to admit, polished hair and polos, he didn't look the part.

"I prefer the term engineer." Nakano gave that gentle smile again. "Problems aren't always technical, after all."

Well that sounded ominous.

" _You_ fucking killed Blo0m," Cat whispered.

"Now, now, language, Katsuko. Ladies don't cuss." Nakano's eyes were sharper than his words. "Let's not devolve to accusations. We are better friends than that."

"We're not--"

"Do you care for your brother?"

Cat's blood chilled. "What?"

"Do you care for your brother?" Nakano patted her hand. His thumb lingered over her fingers and Cat repressed a shiver. "Of course you do. I certainly was so close to mine growing up. I had a big brother. He was about Haru's age when he died. Very sudden. Plane crash."

"...I'm sorry to hear that." Cat hated the way he made her brother's name sound. Familiar and within reach.

Nakano narrowed his eyes at her sympathetically. "The government said that too. It was a computer malfunction, you see, a problem with the national flight control. Jump started my interest in my new career, after the Church took me in. My foster parents were deacons, you see. They taught me how to channel my grief and my skills properly. And the need for real shepherds in the world."

"...I'm guessing you're not talking about some nice grassroots campaigning," Cat said faintly.

"Our leaders are, at best, incompetent and at worst, corrupt. Our world is suffering for it," Nakano said simply. "But--and yes, I can see that distrust there, my dear girl--we're not looking the rule it."

Cat stared. "Coulda fooled me."

It was ridiculous. It was ridiculous and maniacal and like something out of a bad late night movie but holy shit he could _fucking do it_ with _Bishop_ and the infiltration software Cat saw. Jesus.They'd broke the encryption most of the world ran on. People wouldn't ever even know they were having their strings pulled.

To think that Cat _ever_ associated the Church with harmless crackpots and woo-woo celebrities. If she survived this, Cat was fairly certain she'd become a sworn atheist.

Nakano looked at her expectantly now. Both of the men did. The suit that Nakano had called Saito had stopped in his ominous prep. They were waiting for a response, a reaction.

Cat evaluated her options. She's tied up, and it's not as if she's a fighter. She's a runner, but she suspects she's going to get zero chance to do that down here. She can't run, she can't fight.

But if there's one thing that the last month has taught her, it's that she's gotten pretty good at lying. Especially when she's motivated.

Cat was very motivated. "The world...is pretty messed up, I guess."

Nakano's eyes became distinctly more interested as he tilted his head. "Are you saying you understand? Tell me, I'm sure you've had time by now to read our doctrine, what with the little prank you played a while back--"

 _Prank._ Cat remembered the night she'd heard Bl0om had died and what she'd done. _Stole_   _millions and_ _he calls it a prank._

"So tell me, Katsuko, what do you believe?"

Cat caught Ayase's wide eyes over Nakano's shoulder. If it meant getting them out of here alive, Cat would swear to believe in the flying spaghetti monster. She'd chant to Cthulu and dance naked under a full moon, given the right motivation. Cat pretended to consider it seriously before nodding. "I have a lot to learn, I'm sure, but I think the Church has a lot of truth. I've grown to...respect it."

_Like you'd respect a rabid pitbull._

Nakano's eyes remained cynical, but he rewarded her with a smile that was puppies and cotton candy and glitter all in one. It left Cat feeling vaguely queasy as he stroked her head. "Oh what wonderful news. It makes me so happy that we could save one soul."

"Right, so since I'd like to help spread the w--"

"It'll be such a balm to our minds to know your souls are not suffering after death."

...well, that was not the outcome she'd been aiming for. "...wait what?"

_Weren't religious fanatics supposed to be nicer?_

"Of course. I'm gratified that we can reach such an understanding, but my first priority is to, of course, protect my family." Nakano smiled as if he was apologizing for spilled tea, not murder. "You have a brother, so you understand."

Saito went back to his tools. A small whimper came from Ayase.

"You--" Well, if Cat was going to die she was going to certainly stop being freaking _nice about it._ "You lying _fuckers_ \--"

Nakano's fist caught the flat of her cheek. Cat heard a nauseating crunch as her teeth clicked together and her vision exploded. She gasped and blinked back black fireflies that swam in front of her. 

Nakano straightened his cuff. "As a new follower, I'll remind you again. Ladies. Don't. Swear."

Cat tasted blood in her mouth, but was relieved she hadn't bit her tongue harder. The monster in Nakano's pretty eyes smiled back at her.

"I won't take up much of your time. I have a very important meeting soon and I will unfortunately have to keep our time together short." The monster was all smiles again. "Mr. Saito, if you can be so kind as to take confession and then see to these two, I'd be grateful."

Nakano stood and panic rebooted her brain. Considering Saito's array of tools lined up, neither 'confession' nor 'see to' sounded like good futures for her.

Besides, dying at the hands of a henchman for the sake of conspiracy seemed like such a _cliche_ way to die. "Wait! You _need me._ "

Huh. That was cliche too but, fuck it, imminent torture didn't lead to being creative.

"Need you?" Nakano looked amused. "You're clever, but I'm frankly better. What could I need you for?"

Cat hesitated."I have information, data--"

"Any data you have, my dear, I have as well. This is really just a formality to ensure you weren't telling tales to more than your little group." Nakano pursed his lips into a pitying cupid bow at her confusion. "Auctions. I would have never guessed."

Cat sunk back down to her seat. He knew then, all of it. But then why--

"It's been an enlightening chat, Katsuko, but I really must go. I hear it's not polite to keep Ichinomiya waiting."

"Ichi...you're meeting Eisuke?" Cat's heart did a queer flipflop as she tried to process whether that was good or bad news at this point. Did they know where she was? She'd had hope that Baba would be looking for her, faith even, but...the others? They were only interested in profit.

"Yes, Ichinomiya joining the church would be quite a boon." Cat was fairly certain Eisuke wasn't the worshipping type unless it involved a bank account. Nakano leaned over with a catbird smile finally on his lips. He moved towards the door. "I heard you made quite a deal with them with your data, even weak as you were. I wonder what he'll offer _me_?"

 _...bad news, definitely bad news. I've fucked this up. Everything._ Cat thought hopelessly how the agreement was expired. How Eisuke had emphasized the lengths he'd go to in order to protect the auctions and his business.

 _No one was coming._  

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Love Letter from Thief X cameos! That might have been TOTALLY self indulgent but hopefully someone enjoyed it. Maybe. I didn’t realize until after I sat down to write this chapter how, ha, Cat obviously has a soft spot for thieves in her life. Ha.
> 
> Next chapter: Cat and Ayase learn the importance of teamwork. Eisuke Ichinomiya does not believing in holding boring meetings.


	21. Triptych

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baba, Cat, and Eisuke give the Church a bad day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter may be dedicated to people like itive2 and emmy_canary who left so many nice comments on this poor beleaguered fic that I had to open up the file and attempt to finish it. <3333

 

Eisuke was right. Baba did not like the plan. Did not like it as he waited for what seemed like an eternity for the footsteps outside to fade away. Did not like it as he popped the lid on the black town car, freeing himself to glide silently across a darkened parking garage. Did not like it as he caught two guards unawares on a smoke break. Did not like it as he suited up into the taller one’s uniform. Did not like it as he locked them in a disused storage room. Did not like it as he eyed the unhelpful lock screen of the guardpost’s computer and set about tediously finding the code. If Cat were here, she’d be in and wrecking havoc on the system already.

If Cat were here.

It’d already been nearly a day.

Baba didn’t like waiting.

——

Eisuke did not like waiting.

Eisuke’s fingers tapped out a calm staccato on the arm of his chair. Soryu had opted to lean on the wall against the door. Not exactly proper behavior for a supposed attache of Ichinomiya corp, but Eisuke could enjoy the way the mobster’s lip curled as he encountered the faux-spiritual chinese decor. The mega-church was a sculpture of glass, money and obliviousness. The bishop's private office a zen-like affair of minimalism. It took a certain level of wealth to appear as if you owned nothing. It an architecture that Eisuke could appreciate.

What he couldn't appreciate was waiting.

The door jittered open and the cult leader walked in. Mild, charismatic, he rubbed his hands together warmly as he approached so that Eisuke almost wrote him off as an earnest figurehead. Then he caught sight of his hands.

The nails were picked clean, tidy, the hands of those who do not do their own work. He was a sniffle of a man. Eisuke’s gaze landed on the twitch of sweat beneath his collar. An even smile and hungerpang eyes. Eisuke recognized it in an instant.

“Ichinomiya, sir.” The boy used a Western affection which grated on Eisuke’s nerves. He shook his hand with a bit too much force. “I’m honored you were able to make time for us.”

Eisuke’s smile thinned. “You extended an invitation I couldn’t refuse.”

“You’re a hard man to catch at parties.” Nanako opened his hands grandly. “You can’t blame a man for being persistent for the greater good.”

“I can blame a man for daring to blackmail me. With obviously false slander.”

“Obviously false. Must we really go into the nitty gritty details of the auctions, Mister Ichinomiya? I can pull up the most interesting video now if you—”

“No, I’m sure your providence is excellent. I’ve become quite familiar with your type recently.” Ichinomiya smiled.

“I promise you, I’m much more circumspect than that Tachibana girl.”

“She’s nothing to me. I’m here to conduct business,” Eisuke said coldly. “What do you want?”

\---

“What do you want?” Cat had to pinch out her words between pained breaths.

Not because she was hurt, no. Saito saved that for Ayase, applying cold metal and sharp edges like a paintbrush. It was a languid torture. A lazy, Sunday afternoon like torture. Saito seemed content to punch and kick Ayase, which made the moments he paused to pick up a ball hammer or fish knife all the more terrifying. Cat probably only didn’t vomit because there was nothing left in her stomach, but it would have at least made some sense if he'd asked questions.

Saito paused to clean off his weapons—well jesus christ, at least Ayase wouldn’t get an _infection_ before they killed them. Cat’s stomach roiled and she turned away from the sight. From Ayase’s lolling eyes and Saito’s impeccable suit. From the hopelessness of...

Bolts. Cat’s eyes landed on the rusted strut of the shelves she was cuffed to. A single rusted bolt held it to the wall, already halfway out of it’s mooring. Cat had to struggle to keep her breath steady as she counted the threads remaining on the screw. A horrible, truely stupid idea began to form.

She shot Saito a look, but he’d already turned back to his work. Ayase’s head hung between his shoulders but the twitch in his arms gave Cat hope. He was a scrappy meerkat, right?

“Nakano called you Saito, right? Mr. Saito?” Cat tried, but Saito didn’t even turn around. That was ok, she wasn’t talking to him. She raised her voice. “Why don’t you stop it with the detective, eh? I’m feeling _ignored_ and I’m the one who caused trouble here, yah? I’m the _bitch_ that—”

“Miss Lovelace—!” Ayase’s head shot up, horrified. It was her fault that the detective was bloody and broken and missing a couple fingernails but he _still_ used Cat’s fake name and _still_ could be counted on to defend her practically non-existent honor. _God damn white knights_. Saito methodically ignored her taunting.

“No fair hogging all his _attention_ , detective.” Cat caught Ayase’s eyes and slowed down her words to give them emphasis. She gave one, precise tug on her cuffs, enough to make the shelf rattle, begging Ayase to be as clever as she hoped. He was investigating her thief, after all, he couldn’t _not_ be clever and last this long. “If you’d quit _raising such a racket_ maybe he’ll let you go.”

Ayase’s good eye widened, pupil flaring just enough to communicate either understanding or brain damage. But that was all Cat saw as Saito finished his tool selection. He turned to her, blocked her view. Blood-flecked pinstripe and polished pliers filled her vision and immediately told her she had miscalculated.

“Noisy. I’m going to remove your tongue now,” Saito said.

Cat was wrong. There _was_ something left in her stomach.

Ayase chose that moment to go into an apparent seizure. A strangled shriek cut off behind Saito and chains heaved against metal. Saito swung around, blocking Cat’s view. She could only hear Ayase’s feet continue to scruffle and strain on the cement floor. He appeared to consider Ayase a moment.

“Noisy,” Saito muttered. And Ayase’s kneecap shattered under the crowbar.

Cat’s curse was drowned out in Ayase’s scream. She lunged against her cuffs, pathetically, helplessly, and all plans fell out of her head. _God dammit._ There was a lull of broken, human sounds and Saito appeared ready to turn back to her.

Until Ayase appeared to lose his mind.

Saito’s back was to her now and rattled chain and Ayase’s ragged yelling filled the storage room. _Fucking brave meerkats._ Cat’s eyes stung with tears. She worked as fast as possible, slowly rocking the shelving back and forth. The fact that she couldn’t see precisely what Saito was doing made it worse, stretching out the seconds into what felt like hours. She had to stop every time Ayase quieted to take a raw breath, but she felt the bolt begin to give.

Saito was engrossed with his psychopath work. Cat drew an unsteady breath. She gripped the shelving. “Hey. Asshole. Did you ever study physics?”

Saito sniffed, half-turning. “Nois—”

The shelving made a terrific, noisy crash.

——

The guard made a terrific, noisy crash. Baba hadn’t intended to throw him down the stairs but he had to admit that it was a satisfying bonus. It didn’t matter, he’d confirmed the floor was already cleared. It was a nice exercise, but Baba had to bite back his impulse to rush. Three floors. Twenty-five men. Eighteen cameras disabled. No alarms triggered.

And still no Cat.

There was only the two basement levels left. If Eisuke hadn’t done his part, if he was wrong about this, even Baba would have a hell of a time working his way back out before the police arrived.

He checked his watch again.

——

He checked his watch again. Nanako was somewhere in a rabbithole of Church pedagogy, expounding on their international offices and some American celebrity’s couch-jumping evangelism. Eisuke didn’t bother to listen. He cleared his throat.

“Fascinating. However,” He raised his hand and Soryu dropped a file folder and a phone into it. Eisuke kept the phone but the file went across the desk. “I’d rather go into your details.”

Nanako’s eyes shuttered as he took the offered folder. He revealed nothing as he flipped it open and scanned the contents, emmitting a mild hum between pages. “I wasn’t aware you vetted your spiritual leaders so thoroughly.”

“Religion is such a big decision,” Eisuke said. “I am a very spiritual man.”

Nanako almost looked amused. “If you’re trying to counter with your own blackmail, I’m afraid I’m not persuaded.”

“Blackmail? Oh no.” Eisuke’s smile was bright. “I just wanted a head start on what tomorrow’s news would do to my stock portfolio.”

Amusement fled. “Pardon?”

“After all, kidnapping young women is such a scandal for a vibrant public group like your church. I really am interested to see what you say at your press conference. I really was surprised to receive that email just before I got here, inviting all the press like that. ” When Nanako didn’t respond, Eisuke toyed with the phone in his hands and tossed a mild glance to Soryu. “Do you think the police will get here before or after the tv crews?”

Soryu made an exaggerated glance at his watch. “The informant should be tipping the police off about now. I’m betting after.”

Assuming Mamoru hadn’t fallen asleep, that is. Eisuke nodded. “Oh, good. That makes it more interesting.”

“You think you can manipulate _me?_ ” Nanako relaxed back in his chair. “Your girl didn’t explain the situation to you properly. None of this will ever reach the news. I have Bishop.”

“And so do we.”

Eisuke took a long, slow sip of his coffee. It was horrible coffee, but the slow, languid look of fear that drew across the pastor’s face was quite delicious.

“This,” Eisuke said cooly. “Is the part where you shut up and listen.”

——

“Just shut up and listen, Mr. Ayase—”

“You should leave me, Miss. Go for help—!”

“Not happening.” Ayase was quite a bit heavier than he looked. Cat grunted as she shifted her weight, practically pulling his arm out of the socket as she tried to keep his damaged leg from smacking with every halting step. Baba made this look so easy. “A very wise asshole told me once that giving up is for the weak. Now hush.”

Ayase fell quiet. The shelving had neatly knocked Saito senseless, and Cat’s elbow to the face had knocked him a little more than senseless, but that was about all that had gone to plan. It had taken time to extract themselves from the storage room—not helped by the fact that the shelving had also landed partially on _Cat_ and the handcuff keys were, helpfully, ultimately found in Saito’s discarded jacket pocket. Then there’d been the task of trying to cinch something—anything—around Ayase’s leg enough to at least give them the hope of escaping before he went into shock.

And, of course, the ensuing argument with the detective about all of the above plans. It seemed now that death was no longer imminent and stoic heroics were no longer needed, Ayase returned to his anxious, true form.

“If there’s a phone....?” Ayase tried again, though this time at least keeping his voice low.

Cat really wished there was. She felt deaf and blind, without knowing what the security systems were like for these empty hallways they were stumbling down. “I told you: Nanako wrote Bishop. I’m sure he knows better than to have his phones open to outside calls to law enforcement.”

“I still don't understand what Bishop _is_ —”

“Nothing helpful to getting us out of—shit.” Cat threw Ayase behind the corner as footsteps echoed down the hallway. Slapping her palm over his mouth managed to muffle the pained noise he made, half crumpled against her.

Cat risked peering around the corner and saw a single suited man disappear through a door at the end of the hall. Just before the door closed, a flicker of screens and leds lit up the interior. _A security room._ Cat’s stomach did a thrilled twist. “Thank you hacker jesus.”

“W-what?” Ayase’s face was working up to a truly impressive shade of tomato behind her hand. Cat took pity and stepped back once she was certain he could support his leg against the wall.

She fingered the tiny taser in her pocket. “Uhm, just wait here a moment, detective.”

Ayase, at least, had enough sense not to yell his protest as she dashed around the corner and towards the door. She paused and eased the door open silently—she’d learned a _few_ things running around with Baba, after all. It took a moment for the guard at the console to notice the change in light, and then the next thing he noticed was a few thousand volts of blue sparks.

Cat barely managed to avoid shocking herself as he fell towards her. She stood panting over the guard for a long minute, trying to catch her breath. Jesus. This life of crime was far more physical than she signed on for.

“Miss Lovelace!” Ayase leaned in the doorway, a small trail a blood down the hall behind him. He glanced at her taser and looked particularly horrified, as if they weren’t both beaten and bloody and hadn’t just left a concussed man in a previous room. “That’s assault!”

Cat decided she would never understand meerkats. She tugged him to sit in a chair and shut the door behind him. There was no physical lock, but all these doors had keycard access. She quickly threw herself in front of the terminal. Her heart was shuddering with fear and she stopped to take a slow breath before resting her hands on the keys.

“Let’s get out of here.” She started to type.

——

Nanako started to type. The pastor had abandoned all pretense of cloying charm in favor of throwing open his laptop. “No one could remotely run that code but me.”

“Miss Tachibana did.”

“She...” Nanako’s face turned into a snarl. “...is no longer a concern.”

Eisuke ignored Nanako’s certainty about that, for now. He tilted his head. “You assumed Tachibana was the only talent in my employ?”

The phone in his hands gave an angry squawk of static. Takuto’s voice was faint but distinct. “I am _not_ working for you bastards.”

_What is it with technical aptitude and a poor sense of self preservation?_ Eisuke twitched and made a mental note to stop working with freelancers as he muted the phone. “I’ve recently taken an interest in technology, you see.” Nanako paused to stare at his laptop. Eisuke smiled. “Trouble, pastor?”

Nanako didn’t look up as he grimly began typing again. “How would you even—”

“I don’t employ idiots. Our Miss Tachibana evidently shared her dump with an equally skilled hacker—a hacker, I might add, that has even less scruples, social skills, and general kindness than Tachibana and is _deeply_ unhappy with you right now.”

The torrent of curses that poured through his earpiece told Eisuke it was smart to mute him. Takuto made Cat look positively genteel.

“A simple fix. I can use a press conference a hundred different ways, and just...” Nanako frowned at the screen locked up.

Eisuke was not a fan when he was on the receiving end, but he was beginning to see the merit in investing in technology.

“Your entire Church may be experiencing some slight technical difficulties until we’re done talking. If I don’t like what I hear, the press will be getting a lot more than an email.” He calmly finished his coffee. He unmuted and lifted the phone to his ear. “Any problems?”

“Fuck you,” Takuto grumbled.

Eisuke would take that as a no.

“We’re all set. Just one thing: there’s someone else in the system, though,” Takuto continued. “Not getting in my way, but the doors on sub-levels three to ground floor are all unlocking.”

Eisuke glanced to Soryu and gave a satisfied nod. Soryu quickly tapped out a message on his phone. The thief would be pleased.

——

The thief _was_ pleased, or at least mildly more hopeful. The thief was also busy flying down the stairwell, leaping over railings a floor at a time. Practically burst through the third sub-level door.

Movement. He just barely caught the door with his fingertips to keep it from slamming. One look told him it wasn’t another guard. Suit too nice, if rumpled and splotched with dust, wicked firearm in his fist a bit too expensive. A higher up, then.

The suit at the end of the hall reared back and kicked at the door. He aimed for the lock, but the enforced wood was giving him trouble. A locked door, on a floor where someone had hacked all the doors open?

Baba narrowed his eyes as he caught a muttered curse about a ‘dead bitch’ and then his body was already moving. The man wouldn’t hear his steps over the sound of the door thundering on it’s hinges, again and again.

——

The door thundered on it’s hinges, again and again. Judging from the hissed threats through the door, Saito was awake, Saito had found them, and Saito was _angry._ Cat glanced frantically around the room, but there was nothing more mobile than small monitors, and definitely nothing to hide behind. Ayase was looking at her as she spun back around, looking even more pale than before. The skin around his eyes was waxy and worrisome.

“Give me the taser, Miss Lovelace. I can’t have you getting hurt.”

Cat resisted the urge to roll her eyes, though annoyance at chivalry was a nice distraction to the overriding panic rampaging through her chest. “We’ll figure something out, that door will hol—”

There was a distinct cracking sound from the locking mechanism. The door shuddered more loosely on the hinges now. “—will _probably_ hold a little longer,” Cat finished weakly.

Ayase hobbled to his feet, wincing. He was not quite able to straighten on one leg, but he pushed the chair in front of the door defiantly. “Miss Lovela—”

“Cat.” Ayase gave her a startled look and Cat gave a broken laugh. “If we’re getting killed on my account, you might as well know my real name. Katsuko Tachibana.”

“Oh. _Oh._ ” Ayase froze as the name clicked and things fell into place. A little belatedly, considering all they’d been through, but Cat could blame a lot on adrenaline. He opened his mouth to say something else but something hard slammed against the door with a new kind of furor. They both jumped raised voices and new violence thudded outside.

Cat squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head to the ceiling, focusing on squeezing her heart back into her chest. “What the hell _now_?”

“M-maybe if you hide behind the door I can convince them I’m alone. Slip past—”

“There’s no way anyone’s just ‘slipping’ past these people,” Cat ground out. She opened her eyes and dully took in the dusty cobwebs that clung to the pipes in the ceiling. The same kind of pipes they’d chained Ayase to. Must be old iron ones for the way they held his thrashing weight and...

“...but maybe we can go _over_.” Cat spun so fast it made Ayase jump. “Detective, you’re a genius.”

“...ok.” Ayase was either jaded to her antics or the blood loss taking it’s toll. He stared with tired eyes as Cat pulled a chair over. “Miss Lo—Miss Cat, please, just leave me—”

“Leave you to die, yep. That’s the plan.”

Ayase tilted his head as the door gave a final shudder. More surgical this time. They had maybe twenty seconds before it broke. “Huh?”

Her smile was a jagged, shakey thing, just before swinging her legs up. “Call it Option D.”

The door splintered at the lock.

——

The door splintered beneath Saito’s face and the thug finally stopped thrashing. Baba shoved him out of the way and gave a quick scan of the hallway. No alarms, no guards. Even with all that noise. Either Takuto had done his job redirecting them to a far lobby or the pastor had decided to do something astoundingly stupid with Eisuke and Soryu.

Baba couldn’t waste the concern on them right now. He shouldered the door open and took a shuddering breath as eyes adjusted to the gloom. Wood dust swirled in the light from computer screens and when Baba made out the figure standing in the dark his hopes crashed. “What are—”

Ayase’s eyes were dinnerplates. “You...Lupin! You are under ar....arre...” The detective wobbled precisely once before crumpling on the chair he was using for support.

Baba opened his mouth and promptly aborted it as he heard a broken noise, half laugh, half sob, over his head. He craned his head back and just had an impression of wide brown-sometimes-green-always-bright eyes amid the pipes. And then Cat was dropping through the air and his arms were already out because _of course they were_ and his chest split open and his arms tightened and he found his heart not quite sure of when or how to beat because:

“ _Kat._ ”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: Cat does not like this plan.
> 
> TWO CHAPTERS TO GO, GUYS.


	22. The Life You Steal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cat wins a life, Cat loses a life. And she reacts the only way a Cat really knows how.
> 
> Wherein Baba is a sad idiot and Cat decides what she wants.
> 
> \---  
> "Eisuke plans to give you your life back," Baba whispered. Already in mourning. His voice drew back, breath fading from the shell of her ear. "I would have been more selfish."  
> \---

“Nanako’s going to try to blackmail Eisuke.” Cat struggled to keep up with Baba’s long legs. Even with the added weight of Ayase, slung like a sack of flour over one shoulder, Baba guided them at a quick pace up the deserted stairs of the Church mansion. Cat felt weightless as she bobbed along, pulled along by a thread that bound up the mix of exhaustion and relief overwhelming her. She'd been kidnapped, drugged, tortured, sentenced to death but Baba was hereand, ridiculously, Baba meant safety and Cat could survive anything as long as her ridiculous horrible boys were at her back. One horrible man in particular.

“Ha. Well, at least Eisuke will have entertainment.” Baba hadn’t let go of Cat since she’d caught her in the security room. He looked at her again, as if he was worried she’d disappear if he wasn’t careful. At this point, she was all too happy to lean into his arm. His mouth softened and he gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry, princess. No one blackmails Eisuke Ichinomiya.”

“I did,” Cat felt it was a point of pride to note.

“Well you are an exception to many rules, beautiful.” A shadow swept through his eyes before being shunted away just as quickly. “Eisuke’s got a plan. My job is to make sure you’re safe.”

“I never thought I’d be so happy to get back to the penthouse,” Cat muttered as they turned the corner. “How are we getting out?"

Baba's eyes slid away. "Master bedroom."

That was all he said. If Cat found it odd, she was too tired to take note of it. They diverted down a long private wing of the compound, padded with plush green carpet rather than the cinder-block Cat had just escaped. The softness and color, after a nightmare of concrete and iron, nearly made her head spin. Baba stopped outside a door and finally freed her hand in order to withdraw a lock-pick from a coat pocket. The hallway was strangely quiet, not even a clock ticking. The loudest sound was Ayase's struggling breath until Baba popped the latch and opened the door to a dark room with as much of a flourish as he could manage with a limp detective hanging off one shoulder. "After you."

Cat stepped into the room. Her nose wrinkled at the smell, like an ironic mix of Axe body spray and over-priced red wine. It had to be Nanako's room, no other option for it. It reeked of cheap wealth and cheaper manners, like a high classed Hot Topic. It gave her the creeps just thinking of the sadist again.

Baba deposited Ayase onto the bed with surprising care. He chucked the detective's tie before straightening. French double doors opened to a patio next to the bed, and Baba moved to quickly pick those before returning to the detective. He glanced over his shoulder.  "Mind giving me a hand?"

He was just--off. Stressed? Cat was thrumming with exhaustion and relief, and Baba was just...there. Baba was never _just_ there. Cat tilted her head, but sensed the urgency. She moved to the bedside and helped Baba ease the unconscious man upright, pulling a crinkling groan from him. Baba clicked under his breath. "Definitely some broken bones, probably his ribs too. You'll need to make sure the paramedics know what he's been through."

"One look at his face will tell him that," Cat muttered. Then stopped. Turned her full attention to Baba. "We aren't going to be here when the paramedics show up, will we?" 

Baba clasped the back of her neck and pulled her to him enough to bury his nose in her hair. His hand skimmed down her arm, leaving a trail of warmth. Cat felt herself relax. His fingers drifted back up, tracing little frissons of heat over her jaw as he pulled back to look at her. He pressed his lips to hers. It was a slow, purposeful kiss. A branding kiss that drew the breath out of her and left behind a thread of heat that tangled into her chest. It clouded Cat's thoughts against the next thing he said. "You were kidnapped from your dorm room the day you disappeared. You were held hostage for a month by a psychotic cult leader. You don't know why. A story like that will be easy for you, princess."

Pet names. A distant alarm began in Cat's head and she blinked hard to focus on a response. "And how, exactly, are we explaining the infamous thief in the room? What, Eisuke plans to pass you off as a bystander?"

"Eisuke plans to give you your life back," Baba whispered. Already in mourning. His voice drew back, breath fading from the shell of her ear. "I would have been more selfish."

"What?" Cat turned. Baba stood with his hand on the latch of the patio doors, face shuttered, half in shadow. Cat swallowed hard against the foreboding jangling in her chest. "Stop being an idiot and get us out of here. Ayase's seen both of us. He knows my _name._ So he obviously knows a story like that isn't true."

"Somehow, pretty lady, I suspect the good detective will support whatever story gets you out of trouble." He sighed. His eyes softened. A small, wounding fondness in his voice. "You have that effect on people."

He stepped back into shadow and was on the other side of the patio door before Cat could react. It closed with a decisive click. Cat lurched forward, but came up short as something metal bit into the old bruises around her wrists. 

She looked down, disbelieving. One half of Ayase's metal police handcuffs looped around one of her wrists. The other around Ayase's. She jerked at them but had to stop when the unconscious detective let out a low, pained groan. 

_That kiss. Caress. He fucking **distracted** her._

Cat twisted around again. Baba was a forlorn shadow on the other side of the glass door. Frustration burned hot tears in her eyes and Cat resolutely decided she wasn't hurt, refused to be hurt, not by this. Not after what she'd just fucking survived. She would not be hurt, she would be furious. "You have no right--"

"I have no right to keep you either. You'd give anything to have your family back. You told me that, remember princess?" Baba's voice trembled on the edge of a forced lightness. She couldn't see his face. She hated she couldn't see his face. "My Cat. I stole them back for you."

 _No_. "I never asked--you can't _do this--_ "

"Good-bye, Kat." Baba's voice was rough, strained, which was Cat's only warning. She lunged, yanking Ayase half off the bed to reach the patio door. It was locked, of course it was, and rattled fruitlessly in her hand. The lock should have been on the inside but this was _Nanako's_ room so of course there was no latch to be found. A strangled noise escaped her throat. When she looked up, the only thing she saw was a wash of distant blue and red as police cars converged on the road. Baba was gone.

Cat was not a crier. Cat prided herself on holding together. She was a woman of action. But not today. Not after surviving Nanako's horrors and fighting and struggling and falling and thinking maybe, just _maybe_ someone would catch her for once. She had no action left in her. Shock overwhelmed her. The tears were easy, by the time the police burst into the bedroom. Careening flashlights swam over her, crumpled on the floor next to the bed, one hand chained to the injured detective and chest racked with sobs.

\-----

"They've closed the case then?" Baba said after Mamoru returned to the Penthouse one night. The lights were all out. Mamoru would have said he was brooding but Baba never seemed to notice lights. His voice was graveled with lack of sleep.

"Yeah, yeah. Nanako ain't gonna be spreadin' the good word any time soon." Mamoru took his time fishing for a cigarette. He'd rather breathe the nicotine than the self-pitying melancholy the thief carried with him lately. "Ayase backed her story like you predicted. It didn't take much to make sure she got the sympathetic edit."

He was able to take three long pulls of smoke into his lungs before Baba spoke again. "You talked to her." Statement. Not question.

"If I hadn't, she'd likely been screamin' for me the minute she entered the station, yeah? Damn pain," Mamoru said. He tried not to think too hard about the dark circles under Cat's eyes, the gaze that was one part  betrayed, one part resigned, the way she'd walked down the hall towards her family like a zombie. The way she'd demanded, raged, negotiated, begged answers from Mamoru. "Kid's got quite a mouth on her when she feels like it."

A broken huff in the dark.

Jeezus. Mamoru usually wished for the thief to shut up but he frankly preferred Baba annoying and flirting with him at this point. The detective blew a ring of smoke in his direction. Baba didn't even flinch. "She knows the score. She's too good for us. Pain in the ass like her will be just fine--better, without our shit. Ichinomiya was right about that at least."

 _'It's the best opportunity to remove our involvement from the whole incident,'_ Eisuke had said with a bloodless certainty. He'd added, almost as an after thought: ' _And reunite the girl with her family without any more legal repercussions, which is in everyone's best interest.'_ Mamoru had agreed, at the time, it _was_ a neat way of solving their problems. Take down Nanako, pin him for a number of crimes, with the cherry on top being Cat and Ayase's eye witness testimony of his brutalities, he'd go away for a very, very long time. Plenty of time for the Church of Friends to fold and Soryu and his men to make sure all trace of the _Bishop_  threat was wiped out. 

And it gave Cat the cover story to rejoin her normal life without any questions or suspicions raised against where she'd been during those missing weeks. It was a typical Ichinomiya solution: brilliant, unassailably tidy, and completely bloodless of the emotional cost. Cat was just a card in his hand that had been played out. Mamoru supposed they all would be, eventually. That was fine with him.

Not so much with the thief.

By the time Mamoru realized Baba had failed to agree with him, the shadow beside him was already empty.

\----

  
_takkun: So Cult Girl, eh?_  
_catatonic: please don't_  
_takkun: miracle survivor of the tokyo cult bust_  
_catatonic: fuck you takkun_  
_catatonic: at least they haven't used my name yet_  
_takkun: cops are withholding it but frankly I don't know why they bother. Anyone with half a brain could piece together when you went missing and the supposed 'kidnapping'_  
_takkun: I'm honestly surprised the news hasn't tracked you down yet  
_ _catatonic: you really shouldn't be_

Cat felt too numb to be surprised. The news coverage had been unavoidable. They never publicly announced her name--thanks, Cat suspected, to subtle pressure from members of the Ice Dragons--but that didn't stop the media from it's extensive and exhaustive coverage of the case and up-coming trial. Cat read approximately two articles breathlessly speculating what such a _brave girl_  would have had to _endure_ to _survive a madman_  before she blacklisted the topic from her newsfeeds. She'd been a zombie, that night and the next few days, the blur of police stations and medical exams and statement taking. The only memory that remained painful sharp in her mind was Mamoru-- _Detective Kishi_ , he'd introduced, as if she hadn't been bitching to him about his smokes a day ago--hooded eyes looking at her with pity across the interrogation table. 

_"This is stupid," she'd said. "Every taxi in the city can take me to Tres Spades."_

_"No one's gonna talk to you there. That's a dead end, kid."_

_"I'm not a fucking kid. I should have had a say in this." Cat narrowed her eyes. "I could cause a scene."_

_"I don't think ya will." Mamoru tapped his cigarette like he was bored. "Not your style. Ichinomiya thanks you for your service. You should take his money and run."_

_It felt like a punch and Cat's lip curled. Her eyes burned, but she was so tired of crying. "You can tell Ichinomiya to go fuck himself."_

_"Gladly. Anything else?"_

_"Yeah," Cat stood up in her chair, though there was no where to go. There was never anywhere for her to go now. "Tell Baba he's a coward."_

The interrogations had taken a more traditional route from there, and Cat never saw Mamoru again. Later, when they finally asked what had happened, Cat found Baba's lies in her mouth. _Hostage, brainwashing, I only wanted to see my parents again._ Ayase, just as Baba predicted, had backed up her story, big meerkat eyes on her with heart-breaking concern. Her emotional trauma had been real enough to back up her story, even if the cause wasn't the same.

It was easier than the truth.

 _takkun: glad to be home?_  
_catatonic: yeah_  
_takkun: you haven't come for noodles lately_  
_catatonic: yeah_  
_takkun: cat come on fuck_  
_catatonic: don't get all clingy on me, pork noodles  
_ _catatonic: I just...need some time._

It _had_ been good to see home again. To see her father fuss over her and her mother cook her nerves out, drown them all in oyakudon and niko dofu. Cat had come by that habit honestly. Haru hugged her tight, initially, then held his distance. Looking at her like a troubling specimen in one of his experiments. She felt his doleful eyes on her as she slowly picked back up the painfully necessary pieces of her old life. 

An old life that had ceased to exist. Her friends didn't know how to talk to her now. Her dorm room was long emptied. The school, after much negotiation, allowed her to take her final exams during the summer. Her degree came months later, and after that, to everyone's surprise but Cat's, she received some quite outrageous programming job offers. All from big name companies with subtle but traceable ties to a certain Japanese hotelier billionaire.

_Fucking Ichinomiya._

Cat turned down all of them, but Eisuke had to know that she would. She didn't precisely need the money any time soon, not with the lump sum sitting in her back account. Even after she forced Haru to promise to take a sizable scholarship, Cat could have put another two dozen little brothers through an American ivy league education if she wished. She started halfheartedly looking for apartments, eager to get out from under her parents traumatized gazes, Haru's accusing concern. She could have bought any flat in Tokyo. A penthouse even. Just not the one that was home.

She felt a dull lack of surprise when she stopped on the sidewalk one night, walking home from another apartment search, and discovered somehow her path had wound past the waterfront where Tres Spades sat, a glimmering jewel across the bay.

She could go there. She could stomp into the hotel, demand to see--see them--cause a scene. But Mamoru had been right. It wasn't her style, and more importantly it'd be pointless. She'd never make it past the lobby. _More_ -More importantly, she wouldn't give anyone the privilege of tossing her away twice. She just stared instead. The ridiculous curve of lights, cheap and gleaming. She could just barely make out the stadium-sized LED sign, advertising the glitterati that would show up for the next IVC in a few weeks.

The IVC, where celebrities were courted and deals were made and lives were bought and sold. She'd bought her own new life, for one month, never thinking she'd miss it. Who knows what her horrible men were up to now, what ridiculous risks they were taking. Cat felt shut out, Cat felt purposeless. Cheated. Had anyone really expected to tuck her back into a quiet life now? A life without jumping off buildings and chasing code and kissing thieves that tasted of peaches and truthful illusion. She didn't _care_ about Baba's supposed good intentions. She certainly didn't care about Eisuke's plan. They thought she was just going to forget all that?

_Like hell, Eisuke._

Cat grieved, and then Cat handled grief in the only way she knew how. Cat got vengeful.

\-----

 _catatonic: takkun_  
_catatonic: takkun buddy_  
_takkun: no_  
_takkun: what whatever it is no_  
_catatonic: takkun (@_@)_  
_takkun: fine what_  
_takkun: what the fuck now_  
_catatonic: you said to let you help_  
_catatonic: I need a favor. You and the guys_  
_takkun: fuck no_  
_catatonic: please_  
_catatonic: I promise it's good. Rikki will dig it._  
_takkun: what_  
_catatonic: how would BF feel about stealing an entire auction?_

 

——

 

“This is your fault,” Eisuke said.

The white envelop lay like a bomb in the middle of the coffee table. Which was in the middle of the penthouse, which was in the middle of a flurry of preperation. The IVC was in full swing and the next auction was tomorrow night, and Eisuke needed this to go well. Not for a financial need, of course, but to return an equilibrium to his empire. The months since the incident with the Church of Friends, Eisuke’s business dealings had been constantly interrupted, with interviews, with inquiries, constant questions about how the hotel magnate had done his civic duty by tipping off the police to a corrupt church official. It had been great for PR, but a royal inconvenience for everything else.

Worse, it had broken his best thief. Baba stood over the table, hands shoved in his suit jacket as he stared without interest at the envelop. It was another moment before he marshalled up a paper-thin smile. “Gonna have to be more specific than that, Boss.”

“Just read it,” Eisuke snapped. The smile irritated him. Baba’s smile had always irritated him, but now it wasn’t as if he was even trying. The thief wasn’t the same after the Nanako incident. Really, as long as he did his job, Eisuke had no reason to care, but the everything else was so damned irritating. Baba still laughed, still smiled and joked and made every frivolous comment under the sun. He still went out on the town every night with a new skirt, almost purposefully so, though never the same name twice, and none of them ever came back to the penthouse as they had before. It was just all so thin. Like a wet tissue mask. Eisuke knew it would only take one solid poke and it’d all fall apart.

He did not need a broken thief right now.

He needed a threat from a crew of fully operational thieves even less.

“The Black Foxes. A bunch of robin hoods,” Baba mused, reading the note. “Yeah, I’m familiar.” His look said he was more than familiar. The Great Lupin had a bit of a reputation for robin hood acts himself, but then Baba shrugged, tossing the paper down. “They send a warning note to their mark before they steal something. It’s a schtick they have.”

“But is it legitimate?” Soryu asked.

“I’ve never heard of them not following through.”

“The miscreant that worked with—” Eisuke caught himself, lips thinned. He didn’t have the time to dance around all this. “That helped with Nanako. He was one of them.”

Baba shrugged.

“That put us on their radar.”

Baba shrugged again, and Eisuke wondered if it was more than that. Maybe the Black Foxes held a grudge on Cat’s behalf. Or maybe they’d just saw a vulnerability and got greedy. Eisuke always banked on greed. Humans were reliable like that.

“This is your fault,” Eisuke said again.

“I’ll take care of it.” Baba's gaze wandered around the penthouse, not quite there.

“We have 24 hours. The auction is tomorrow night,” Soryu reminded.

“I’ll take care of it.”

Soryu didn’t bother to hide his doubt. He shook his head and pulled out his phone. “I’m doubling our security.”

——

Baba would take care of it, he figured. Maybe this was just the kind of game he needed right now. Thief against thief, that kind of challenge would have normally set his pulse racing, add gleeful adrenaline to the night. It would have, maybe, it if weren’t these thieves. Takuto and the Black Foxes. Cat’s thieves.

Baba had been Cat’s thief.

He bit down on that thought with violence. His first stop that evening had been, logically, the noodle shop where he’d met Takuto. It had obviously been a favorite hang-out for the Black Foxes, if not their base. Predictably, it had been closed, locked up tight. Baba considered the shabby eaves, simple looking lock, and the dark windows beyond. He supposed he could have broke in, poked around for clues, but he doubted a crew of thieves would make anything that easy for him, and he really didn’t have the time. Tonight was the action. The first auction Since. The first auction since Cat. There was a whole, far too brief, section of his life now that Baba simply categorized as ‘Cat’ and everything else got a before and an after.

The after sucked.

Even if it was better for her. Even if it was only fair, giving her the chance to get her family back, her life back, the best gift he had to offer. Better than the gift he’d been offered in a worse situation, so long ago. No, she already had a family. She didn’t need to cobble together a pale, pathetic substitute from thieves and monsters like Baba had. Without the threat of the Church, she didn't need this shit.

She didn’t need—

She didn’t need Baba. Not like he’d needed her.

Right then. Back to the thieves. He spent the night poking around his usual haunts, buying drinks for people who were normally good for information. But either this heist didn’t exist or the Black Foxes were wealthier than he thought because every drink came up empty. He lingered too long in the bar, wishing not for the first time that he could hold his liquor well enough to forget, but eventually he headed back to get ready for the auction.

He passed by Le Renard Noir again. He told himself it was to catch the thieves preparing. It wasn’t. He didn’t.

The tension in the penthouse snapped through the air the second he got off the elevator. Ota and Mamoru were no where to be seen, but Soryu muttered tersely into a phone by the entrance. Eisuke gave him one look and fairly chucked the tablet across the room. Baba caught it.

“There’s been an incident,” Eisuke said. Calm, which was Baba’s first red flag. “Where have you been?”

“Looking into things, Boss.” Baba really didn’t want to take his eyes off Eisuke in that mood, but he focused his attention on the tablet. The hotel’s security systems were on display, and a horrifying portion of the screen was red. “The IVC?”

“Oh the party is running smoothly. Or it will be until our valuable guests realize there’s nothing to buy.”

“What?”

Soryu clicked off his phone and pulled out his gun. “Multiple intrusions around the hotel. And we’ve lost control of the inventory level.”

“Oh,” Baba said. He studied the screen more carefully and made sense of the red text with renewed alarm. All of the auctions goods, hackers-for-hire not included, were normally kept under lock and armed guard on one of the secret, subterranean levels of the hotel that never made it onto the blue prints. It was a warren of smaller vaults surrounding a large warehouse space at the center, filled with the showpieces that drew in Japan’s wealthiest. The whole level, minus the elevator, was sealed in four feet of concrete and steel. Each vault had reinforced walls and the main storeroom boasted an uncrackable bank door, three feet of steel that Baba had vetted himself. “That’s not possible.”

“We lost contact during the shift change.” Soryu shook his head, fist clenched white around his gun as he checked the ammunition. “Every system down there’s now working against us.”

“A hacker?” Baba felt his hopes rise, but Soryu shook his head.

“Multiple, physical intrusions." Soryu made a face. "They tied up our men on the loading dock and replaced their guns with _bananas._ There’s a systems expert but whoever it is, they’re working in a team.”

The light feeling in his chest died. That had to be Takuto and the foxes then. Cat might have befriended thieves, but allowing others to help her was a foreign concept to her—as she had frustrated Baba by proving over and over again. Plus, Cat never had shown any interest in thievery beyond information. “Black Foxes then.”

“My men have the floor locked down. If they’re already in there, they’re not getting out, but they’re not communicating with us either. It’s going to take at least a day to get the equipment down there to break through the doors.”

“We are not postponing the auction,” Eisuke said, in the way he had of saying things as if it made it so. It usually did.

Baba studied the security again then flipped to the private schematics of the inventory floor. There was always a way in, and suddenly Baba saw his. He sighed, handed the tablet to Eisuke and began to roll his shoulders to warm up. “I’ll take a look.”

——

Every good spy movie had someone sneaking through the vents. It was ridiculous because a) most air ducts were not reinforced to support the weight of an average adult, b) it was impossible to move over pressed metal silently c) room vents made for the awkwardest exit points and d) Baba liked his suits. He preferred routes with more class, style. Not to mention comfort.

Which was why, as his sleeve ripped on a screw and aluminum flexed and boomed loudly around him, he cursed the crew under his breath. There was a professional courtesy amid Tokyo’s thieves, and he actually liked the Black Foxes. He’d been prone to argue that when they caught them, Soryu’s men should try not to _dead_ them too much, but at this point, Baba would gift wrap them for the Ice Dragons himself just for the indignity.

Baba finally reached the correct juncture and dropped down into the main hallway of the inventory level. He'd made so much noise banging through the vents he'd really expected to be greeted with a gun in the face. A knock over the head. A trap at the very least, if only to be polite, but the hallway was deserted and quiet. Lights dimmed. He listened for a minute, hearing nothing. No shuffling or movement, no loading of treasures or cursing between men. 

He could probably unlock the doors here. But none of this seemed quite right. He didn't care to let Soryu's men rush headlong (and they always rushed headlong) into a situation before he checked it out. He carefully made his way down the hall. He didn't bother to check the individual storage rooms. No, a hit this big, a thief would be only one place. He headed to the main warehouse.

The warehouse was a bare, large room, concrete walls burdened with shelves and running back into deep shadows. Eisuke occasionally gave special guests previews of items before an auction, so tasteful spotlighting showed off finer pieces, jewels on black velvet on pedestals. None of which had been touched. He skirted a cluster of antique furniture, rich french reclining couches of probably sordid history drapped in dust cloths. 

He heard the faint static of a screen springing to life only a second before a louder noise echoed behind him. The solid, unmistakable click of a lock. Baba groaned, already spinning into a run. The warehouse door was shut tight, and Baba gave it a half-hearted jiggle to confirm it was, indeed, locked again.

No matter. He could foil the lock on his way out, but it would take some time. He'd vetted the locks on this place himself. And done too good a job on it, Baba thought not without some irony. He sighed and turned to face the warehouse again. "Neat trick!" His too cheerful voice bounced off the shadows. He sauntered back the way he came again, eyes on guard for movement. "Clever as a fox, really. Is that where you get your name? But stealing from Ichinomiya? During the IVC? You're in over your head this time. Trust me, I know."

He spied the screen on against the far wall. Blank, but the electric black still poured light out a shade brighter than the shadows around it. Baba approached it, hands shoved into his pockets with a false ease. "Takuto, wasn't it? We already know where to find you. You realize Boss is gonna make you a _literal_ dead man after this. No switch required."

The voice that came over the speakers was soft, almost whispering and flickering with static, but Baba would recognize it anywhere. 

"Takuto's not here, and Ichinomiya can blow me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At this point I feel pretty foolish saying anything else in here after so long an absence but...uhm, hi? <3
> 
> (One more v long chapter.)


	23. Good Luck, Bad Luck

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caught you.  
> \------------  
> His throat worked, burdened with a low, emotional burr as he spoke. "Caught you, pretty lady."
> 
> Cat tried to remember how to breathe. "Pretty sure I caught you."
> 
> The smile, if possible, grew even wider. And there, right there, a cocky glint Cat couldn't even miss in the dim light.  
> "Okay," Baba said.  
> \-----  
> Also, the Auction Protocol now has a PLAYLIST for your re-reads: <https://open.spotify.com/user/ninjakins/playlist/3Err8kmlfm7egZUne9Y61T>

"Takuto's not here, and Ichinomiya can blow me."

A rush of emotion viced around Baba's heart. He spun on one foot, half hoping to see her, baggy hoodie and ratty laptop in hand, but the warehouse was still. He wasn't sure what to do with the breath he held. He forced air through his teeth and turned back to the screen. Voice quiet. "Cat."

"That’s me. I suppose I'm not a princess anymore." A sigh. "Long time no see, Great Lupin."

The screen was still blank. Baba pitched his ears to the space around him, but all he could hear was the faint electronic hum. "Still not seeing, from where I stand. I'd rather talk face to face, beautiful."

A sharp click, enough harshness to crack. Cat's voice was too stiff. "You've already made your preference clear. And I wouldn't be caught dead in the same room as you."

So she hated him. Maybe that was the best way to leave it. He let the lie sit heavy on the hurt in his chest. "That's fair. So what are you doing, princess?" Baba held onto the jest in his voice, barely.

"Stealing the auction. What's it look like I'm doing?"

"Getting yourself dead if you're not careful," Baba said earnestly.

"I'm always careful."

That was too big a lie to even address. "The card came from the Black Foxes."

"Yep."

Baba hadn’t meant to clench his jaw. He didn’t realize he’d tensed up until he had to press the words out. "You're with them now?"

"No. I'm freelancing," Cat said, and Baba could breathe. "This was my cut. All I asked was to get to run the warehouse on my own."

"Why?"

"Because I knew Eisuke would send you."

That sounded unfairly like hope. Baba's breath hitched. "Pretty lady--"

"So this is how it's going to go." Cat's quiet voice cut him off, sharp with the edge of something painful. She cleared her throat, sounding like she was steeling herself. "I'm going to ask my questions. You're going to answer them. In exchange I'll let you take one thing from here before I hand everything else over to the Foxes. You can tell Ichinomiya I left him a parting gift."

"...Why?" Baba had to ask. This didn't make any sense.

"Because...." The voice huffed, starting over again still in that whisper. "Hell. Because I'm not a good person. I'm not a good person and Eisuke is an asshole and these auctions are horrifying and you don't--you just le---because I'm _mad_. Want to take a guess why?"

Baba couldn't exactly argue on any of those points. He'd hurt her. He scuffed the ground. "What's your questions?"

"Right," Cat breathed. And then after a moment: "Are there any humans listed in this auction?"

"No," Baba said. "Even for us, that's-- No."

"What happened to the Bishop program after Nanako was arrested?"

God. That whole night and several days afterwards was lost to a fog of pain for him. He vaguely remembered Ota barely managing to talk him down from going back for Cat. Ota had talked him down from a lot of things. The artist had proceeded to spend the next three days pouring whiskey shots to keep Baba in the penthouse. He raked a hand through his hair as he tried to remember what had been said. "Takuto chased down what he could, something about taking down their servers. He probably told you that. But Nanako wasn't the only one running the Church. There might be more out there."

"Yeah." Cat let out a disappointed sigh. "What's going to happen to Nanako?"

Baba's jaw clenched, painful and certain. "Nothing good."

"He's in jail, Baba. That's enough," Cat said, and for a moment, the way she said it, she was his Cat: put-upon, glimmering, levelly practical.

"Not for what he did," Baba muttered and realized he was pacing when he nearly tripped over a dropcloth.

The voice on the monitor hissed with a slow breath, long and unwinding. "Just....sit. You're going to break an ankle like that."

Baba grimaced and sat. Then he tilted his head at the screen. Thought of the whisper in her voice, the words she'd said. Thought of four feet thick walls of the basement, enough to block out any wireless signal. A clattering can in a dumpster. A small possibility began to coalesce in his brain.

"The plan that night was to put him away for good," Cat guessed.

"Yes."

"Using me."

"Yes."

"I'm guessing Ichinomiya's idea."

"Yes," Baba said. "But I went along with it."

"Why?" Cat asked next, and he knew it was the question she'd been working her way up to. A clipped, single syllable. Careful, contained, straining at the edges. He didn’t know the words to take that away.

"It was the best gift I could give you.” He grasped for words, adrift. Without a smile or a smooth line. He was fucking this up. “To...have the chance, to...stay who you were."

"Maybe I should have got to decide who I am."

"...maybe." That hurt, like a splinter in his chest, but Baba had never really been able to believe anyone would choose someone like him. God knows he wouldn’t have.

But he was certain of his hunch now. He rose and took a few steps, calmer now, slow and drifting, around the dark room. Cat resumed after a moment. "Just one more question."

Baba drew a small breath as he widened his path. "What is it, beautiful?"

She took so long to answer that Baba almost thought she'd dropped the transmission. "Are you happy?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" A good lie required a smile. Smiles were Baba's expertise, but he reached for one and felt the bottom fall out from beneath his expression. It came out as a grimace. He suddenly felt nothing but stiff, miserable everything. He rubbed his face instead. "No need to worry about me, pretty lady."

"I thought you were a better liar, Baba." Cat said it softly, without accusation.

Baba swallowed. "I never...quite got the hang of it. Not with you."

"Try the truth then."

"I’m--No." Baba breathed through the gut punch. "It wasn't a choice for me, but you--Cat. You have a family, a life, you have a choice. When I was...I started doing this because I didn't have any other choice. I like what I do, I do. But I wasn't going to let anyone take that choice from you, even me. God I--I wanted to. I wanted to just steal you and keep running. I would have let you down because I’m so used to holding my breath and you--You were...air." His hands twitched again and he breathed through his fingers once, twice, until he could press the words out of his lungs. "I haven't breathed since you left."

He heard it then. The shudder of air, a crumbling laugh against wood. Baba turned and zeroed in on the sound, pulled by a hope that hurt.

\---

Storage rooms were cold. Why were storage rooms always cold? Was there something about expensive items that innately sucked the heat out of the air?

Cat wondered, not for the first time, what she was doing here. Crouched in the back of an impossibly deep wood armoire--she really did not want to know the providence that would cause an armoire to end up on the black market. Fucking rich people. But it was cold enough in the store room that she'd had time to pilfer a fur coat from another exhibit and cocoon herself in it as she waited.

For Baba.

She decided her pulse had not leapt into her throat when he slid out the vent. She had not had to steady her voice before clicking on the speaker. Had definitely not had to struggle to remember the questions she'd intended to ask, the threats she was supposed to make, rather than kick her way out of the literal closet and tackle the stupid thief. She'd been angry and hurt when she'd planned this. Angry and hurt as she'd worked out the ruse with Takuto. Angry and hurt--god it had hurt--to walk back into this hotel, through the IVC, in a familiar dress and under an unfamiliar name. But now she was here and she was cold and he was just saying such ridiculous things. Things like he hadn't ripped the horizon out of her future and left her there. Left her behind.

_"I haven't breathed since you left."_

A weak noise escaped her. Cat clamped her hand down hard enough over her mouth to make her teeth hurt, but knew it was too late. It almost didn't matter: she was ready to be found. Or find. Catch. Or be caught. It was all tangled up for her right now. Her heart thudded loud in her ears, eyes hot from unspilled tears. She pushed the laptop off her lap, shoving to her feet fast enough for her head to connect hard with the low shelf of the armoire. A pained curse slipped her lips. She only had time to hold her head and grimace before the doors crashed open and Baba braced against them like they held him up.

It was a rapidfire sight. A strange, unfamiliar Baba that gasped a breath as she met his eyes, unfinished, no polished edges to that raw look he gave her, no sweet words prepared on his lips. A hunting gaze swept over her, taking in her bare feet (heels hurt, okay?), pilfered fur coat looped around her shoulders like a cape, not quite covering the sparkly, scratchy hem of the murder dress (as if she'd put it on tonight ironically, she swears it was ironic) until his eyes found hers again. But he held her gaze and his lungs unlocked, lips melting up into a smile so full of awe, so full of wonder that all of Cat's alarm fell away in a warm rush.

His throat worked, burdened with a low, emotional burr as he spoke. "Caught you, pretty lady."

Cat tried to remember how to breathe. "Pretty sure I caught you."

The smile, if possible, grew even wider. And there, right there, a cocky glint Cat couldn't even miss in the dim light.

"Okay," Baba said.

Baba moved, an arm reaching out tentatively, to touch her, to draw her forward. But Cat pulled first. He had left her but Cat had come here to _pull_ first. Her hand bunched in his jacket and yanked hard enough to send them both tumbling against the back of the armoire.  

Cat's heels hit wood. Baba's forearm came up and braced his fall, bracketing her in. The back of her head was cushioned from the impact by a warm palm and light dimmed to near nothing as the door swung closed behind them. A thrill of surprise stole the air from Cat's lungs. When she breathed in again all she could feel was darkness and wood and Baba. He still smelled of mint and warmth. His hand still cradled the back of her head, drawing small waterfalls of sensation against her scalp until his fingers settled softly against the back of her neck. The pad of his thumb, warm and a little rough, tentatively drew across her jaw to her lip.

Her gasp brought pleased chuckle near her ear. "Wouldn't be caught dead in the same room?"

She told him that. And she'd told herself she hadn't intended to get caught. "I lie," Cat whispered against his thumb.

A shudder of breath tickled over the shell of her ear, and the touch at her mouth disappeared. Replaced quickly by a whisper of lips that were achingly soft, more restrained than he's ever kissed her before. But even that light sweep of his lips against hers was a little collision, amplified by the darkness, frissons of heat that spark warmth that flushed up her spine. A shiver leaned her into the kiss, hands found their way past his suit jacket in the dark, gripping the lapel of his shirt. He's warm so warm, a cocky, sneaksy furnace and--

She's mad. She reminded herself that she's mad. Maybe that's a weak argument at this point but she should be mad. Her hands spasmed, from gripping to flat. Choosing to focus on forcing him to lean back rather than how nice and firm his chest feels beneath her hands.

"I'm mad," she said. _Brilliant. Yes. A+ observation, Cat._

"You? Princess, you're holding an entire auction hostage. I'm pretty sure I'm the offended party here."

"You left me." Behind. Left her behind which just felt so much worse.

"You ran away from me," Baba breathed, a trip in his voice, covering broken ground. "Worse, you didn't trust me."

"Well you--" Cat clicked her mouth shut, frowning into the dark. Her head fell forward, pressing into his shoulder. She closed her eyes and breathed in. Somehow the dark drained the remains of her anger. "That was a mistake." Obviously.

"Everything since I saw you last has been a mistake." Baba breathed, nose in his hair that was almost a little too much like the last time she'd saw him. But the tremble in his arms told her he was out of clever feints for the moment. He pressed his lips to her crown. "God, I've missed you."

It was impossible to have this discussion, pressed against the wall of a wardrobe, when all she wanted was to dig her fingers into his hair. So she didn’t. Cat was done talking. Her hand wiggled under his jacket and she reached up to kiss him again.

"Cat--" Baba paused, and for once in her life Cat wished he was the frivolous playboy he pretended to be.

She pressed her lips along his neck, found that spot behind his ear instead. "Stop worrying."

"You shouldn't be--"

"The whole point of your stupid idea was to give me a choice, right? I had three miserable months to consider my options." She found his gaze in the dim and locked eyes with him. "I'm making my choice."

"And that is?" His voice was suddenly hoarse.

"You're my thief. I believed that. " Cat closed her eyes, summoning up words on a rooftop, the smell of peaches. It steadied her nerves. The words were easy to remember. "You were always going come to steal me away, and no matter where I ran, or where I hid, or who had me cornered. Win or fail, fly or fall, you were going to be the one to steal me back."

Baba didn't appear to even breathe. Cat took a ragged breath for him, not daring to look. "I believed that. I still do. I chose. I chose you. I--” She bit back a swell of hurt, determined to get this out. Her eyes stung with the pent up feeling of the last three months. “You _are_ my thief. So…so where the hell have you _been_?"

A tremor swam through the muscles under her hand, ending as Baba took a breath. "Cat--"

"It doesn't matter." Cat opened her eyes. Her fist slowly unwound and allowed it to spread over his chest. Kept her voice level. "I choose you. Now."

Light in Baba's brown eyes shifted, sharper. He licked his lips. "Okay."

Baba's lips found hers, but didn't linger. They traced a hot trail of sparks across her cheek, kissing each eyelid before tracing the lines of her ear again. His breath turned into a shuddering thing that turned into a desperate thing. He took her pulse between his lips. His knee slid between hers and he pressed her into the wood. "Kat."

She slid up on his thigh, pulling delicious friction that pooled in her gut. Heat burst in her head and Cat's breathing hitched. "Fuck."

"Mmm, yes. You always have the very best ideas, princess." Baba's teeth found the tender skin beneath her jaw at her words. Then he stilled and Cat felt him smile against her skin. "I can take one prize from the vault, right? That was the deal?"

Cat really did not want to negotiate her stupid plot right now. _Really._ She made a small disgruntled sound in her throat. "Yes?"

"Excellent," Baba said and, without turning, kicked the wardrobe door open behind them. A tug on her wrist forced a surprised chirp out of her. The world tilted, and the sudden very excellent view of the way Baba's jacketed covered his ass and the way muscled thighs filled out his slacks was enough to make Cat realize she was being fireman carried across the warehouse.

"What the hell--"

"I made my choice, pretty lady," Baba sang.

"What--I am not a prize." Cat nearly squawked with indignation, and no small small amount of physical frustration. She entirely endorsed where the earlier bit was going.

"You're right. You're more of a treasure. Worth more than even I could ever afford but--" Baba's hand moved from steady on her hip to trace a cheeky circle on her ass. The grin was just loaded in his voice. "--lucky for me, I'm a thief."

The door opened into the hallway under Baba's hand--truthfully, Cat had left it unlocked after he'd turned away from it. Light poured in, and Baba's ridiculously long strides carried them into the deserted hall. All the blood was rushing to Cat's face. That was why she was blushing, she decided. Not the face that Baba's hand had slid to toy with the hem of her murder dress, fingers darting beneath the hem to find sensitive skin. She buried her face in his back. "You are not carrying me through the IVC like this."

Baba stopped short. A groan rumbled through his chest. "Shit, Soryu and his men--no, not dealing with that. Change of plans." His direction reversed and Cat had to clutch awkwardly to his back in order to not topple.

"Does this plan include putting me down?"

"Eventually!"

The world dimmed as they crossed back into the warehouse and Cat did a double-take as she heard Baba shove closed the door behind them. She slid off his shoulder, stumbling until her rear collided with something soft. She glanced behind them and recognized the ridiculous oversized settees for auction, still draped in white cloth. She had the thought that wondered just how the sponsors decided what to 'acquire' for these stupid auctions. Then Baba locked his hips against hers, pressing her against the settee back, and Cat stopped thinking.

Baba's lips skimmed her collarbone, nipping at the hollow and sending a coil of heat straight into her hips. When one hand drug with purpose down her spine, seeking the zipper, Cat tilted her head back like a swimmer coming up for air. "Wait."

"You’re too cruel, princess," Baba whined into her shoulder, but his hands stopped immediately. They rested on her hips, feeling like they could burn a hole through the sequins with intent alone.

"No, I just--hang on," Cat slid reluctantly off the settee and retrieved her phone from the armoire and returned. She bent over her screen as she felt Baba's familiar heat press in behind her. His hands were wildfire on her hips, arms, shoulders, waist. He made a disgruntled sound in his chest.

"I would never want to disrespect or interrupt your important work, pretty lady but--"

"This isn't..." Cat dropped her head as Baba's lips found the nape of her neck. She suppressed a shiver and struggled to focus on the face of her phone. "I am making sure my back-up doesn't get an eyeful."

"Your back-up," Baba repeated lowly.

"A very smart thief taught me to not try something stupid alone. Takkun--"

"Let him watch." Baba punctuated it with a nip at her neck that made Cat's knees weak. She nearly dropped her phone as Baba spun her around by the hips. The world upended in a flutter of white cloth as Baba tipped them over the back and onto the settee.

In a blink Baba had a hand drifting up her thigh, playing slow circles that purred heat up to her core. His smile was all cat-like smugness and just a hint of possessive light. It did ridiculous things to Cat's insides. Still, she put a hand on his chest and narrowed her eyes. "You aren't jealous of Takkun."

"Well not right _now_ ," Baba mumbled. His eyes strayed downward, as if just realizing what fabric he'd been fighting. "You wore our dress." He was delighted.

"My dress," Cat said. Baba picked at the clasp on her hip.

"The dress." Baba's head ducked to nip at the low neckline over the swell of her breasts. His lips found the pebble of a nipple and mouthed at it through the fabric. He hummed against her skin there. "I really like this dress, princess. It'll look stunning on the floor."

"Wait--I haven't--" Cat huffed as she scrambled with her phone. She really did not want to share this moment, even accidently, with Takkun's eyes. He gave her a hard enough time as it was for all of this. She slid her free hand down and firmly clasped her hand over his crotch. Baba was hard and searing even through the thin press of his pants. He froze, as she expected, but the way his lips parted with a little aborted noise was an incredibly delicious bonus.

Cat's smile might have been a little smug herself. She bit her lip, which seemed to make Baba twitch. "I said, Wait."

She hummed as typed. She killed the cameras and shot off a vague text to Takkun.

Baba hissed as her hand slid. "Cat--"

"Almost."

Baba's eyes burned into her as he hovered, hips drawing heavier into her hand in a way that left both of them breathing harder. "Remember this, princess, when my lips are on your--"

"There." Finally, she dropped the phone where it would surely get lost in the cushions. Baba's way with words was doing murder on her pulse. "Alright. I'm..." Cat looked up and got caught on the hot, predatory look in Baba's eyes. His lips were parted, inches from hers, as if he was already tasting her. She drew in a little breath. "...done."

"Oh, no, princess." Baba's hand found the clasp of her dress and it slid off the strain of her curves like a sigh. He took a moment to drink her in, gaze sliding down then slowly up like a physical touch. He smiled at her like a promise. Voice caught somewhere between a whisper and a purr. "We aren't even started yet."

\----

Being a thief meant placing your faith in luck. A fickle goddess at best. Sometimes, a guaranteed score would turn up an empty safe. Sometimes you pickpocket a street vendor and find rubies. Sometimes the guard dog was asleep. Sometimes the guard dog brought friends. A mistake--bad luck--had actually sent him to Eisuke's mansion one night, a long time ago, and so the auctions were born. Baba was an optimist. He had always considered himself lucky, but you couldn't always tell, right away, what was bad luck and what was good, but Luck was a reliable goddess. She delivered.

A clear night, good luck or bad luck?

An empty hallway, good luck or bad luck?

A woman with a secret, blackmail in hand. Good luck or bad luck?

Baba would never curse his luck again.

Soft, slow breath tickled his neck. The contrast to the chilled air of the warehouse might have made him shiver if he wasn't already deep in a satisfied, boneless haze. The dropcloth had been marshalled into a makeshift blanket. Too thin to keep warm, but  Cat was a flushed bundle of limbs across his chest, skin, all skin and softness. Baba was more than content to breath in the moment. His fingers traced a necklace of soft, blushy red marks he'd left across her collarbone. She'd be mad when she realized neither her hair or the dress would cover them up. Worth it. Baba grinned into her hair. "Awake, princess?"

Cat made a humming sound that might have been an acknowledgement. Baba tickled her shoulder, enjoying the tiny goosebumps that pricked across her love-reddened skin. He smiled as she looked up. "Don't you going to call off the Black Foxes soon?"

"Hmm?" Her eyes drooped closed again.

"The heist...?"

"Oh. That." Cat blinked, hazy eyes coming into focus as if she'd just remembered the suicidal crime she'd masterminded. "It was a ruse. Just a distraction. We were never gonna steal anything from the auction."

Baba's fingers paused. "They just--what, risked a war with the Ice Dragons to help repair your love life? Not that I'm complaining, mind you."

Cat smiled then her gaze tripped suspiciously towards the ceiling. She compressed her lips around a guilty wince. "Ah, no. I mighta promised them something else."

"What?"

That pause held a beat too long. He narrowed his eyes. Cat bit her lip. "Your....car? The black one? I still had the key codes for the garage."

Not that keycodes had ever stopped her anyway. Not his Cat. "You let a thief ring steal my car?"

"Maybe?" Cat twisted her mouth. "You left! I was mad! I figured if we worked things out I could pay you back afterwards and...well, if you were a douche then you deserved it anyway."

Baba groaned, only half in jest, as he tried to remember exactly which car he'd left at the hotel. The maserati, he thought. Well, at least it wasn't the Tesla. "I'm never going to live this down."

"I'm sure Lupin's reputation will recover," Cat said, guilty look gone as her fingertips found the fresh patch of abdomen revealed by his movements. She leaned over and placed a precise, cautious kiss over his heart. And suddenly Baba would have been willing to let the Black Foxes have his _kidneys_ if it lead to this moment.

Baba returned to playing with her hair. "Still, Boss is going to want to kill you for all this."

"Just like always, then." Cat fell back into the curve of his arm. The way her breasts slid against his side was perfect. _She_ was perfect. Bleary eyes squinted. "Is it weird to say I've missed having a billionaire wanting my head on a plate?"

"He can't have it. I'm keeping all of you." Baba breathed, languid and deep, more relaxed than he'd felt in months. He blinked lazily up at the ceiling. "I'm going to have to buy half of this auction to placate him."

"Twenty million. A car. An auction. I'm expensive," Cat mumbled sleepily.

Baba smiled. "Worth every yen." His hand twitched around her hip, dragging her closer as he settled deeper into the cushions and closed his eyes. "Definitely buying this couch."

"Settee," Cat corrected, smile in her voice heart-breakingly fond. "Terrible thief."

  


\--epilogue--

 

"You two have five minutes," Eisuke's irritated voice grated in her earpiece. Cat rolled her eyes as she watched the progress bar on the screen.

"We agreed I'd need at least twenty. It's a party, Mr. Ichinomiya. Have another drink and _smile pretty_." She tapped off her earpiece and cast Baba a look as she slid out of the executive chair. He stood guard near the hallway, watching through a tiny crack in the door. He'd already done his job, getting them up here with keycards that Ota had acquired through probably flirting his way through half the cocktail party going on downstairs.

The executive office of the Church of Friends was at the top of a rather non-descript tower downtown. Looked like an office building but built like a fortress. The Church was notoriously secretive, and that had only increased in the months since the Nanako scandal. It had taken all of Ota's celebrity pull to get him and Eisuke invitations to the holiday charity event going on in the main lobby. Eisuke had needed to make a large donation--a show of good faith for a rehabilitated Church--to get them in the front door.

_"The Church isn't going to use Bishop any time soon," Mamoru had said, ruffling her hair in greeting a couple weeks after she moved back into the Penthouse. Cat was running a routine diagnostic on the network. Somehow she'd become Eisuke's new unpaid security consultant for perpetuity in exchange for forgiveness. She told him he was a bastard. She didn't tell him she would have done it anyway. "Police are all over them now."_

_"But Bishop still exists." Cat shook her head, troubled. "Anyone with the know-how can use it if they get their hands on it. Hackers, businessmen, governments."_

_"The important part is you're not a target anymore, kid."_

_"No offense, detective." Cat squinted out the window, thinking of Bl0om, Sarai, the rest. "It's not enough. It's just...not enough. Every copy of Bishop needs to be wiped out."_

_"You think you can do that?" Eisuke said, eyes narrowing as Cat nodded firmly._

_"Just get me to the servers. Think of it as proactive security for all of you."_

_Baba hummed. "Sounds like fun."_

It was fun, which was probably a testament to Cat's skewed perspective. Slinking around the building in Baba's shadow, directing him around security cameras and narrowly avoiding guards and jailtime. While Eisuke and Ota swanned at the party and Soryu waited with an armed escape and Mamoru monitored the security comminques, everything one mis-step away from disaster. You know: fun.

She popped the side off the PC tower and pulled a tiny screwdriver out of the pocket of her black fatigues to begin working at the hard drive mount. Baba came over and crouched down to take screws from her without prompting.

"Boss is probably surly and surrounded by thirsty church ladies," Baba said.

Cat savored that mental image a moment. "He'll live. Five more minutes and we're out of here. I've already nuked the servers and corrupted everything here. Bishop's dead. I just want to take these hard-drives to make sure we don't leave anything recoverable behind."

"Mmm. Have a told you how incredibly hot you are like this, princess?"

“More comfortable than the murder dress.”

“I _like_ the murder dress.”

“You like the murder dress when I take it off.”

"Some of us can hear you. Not that I'm complaining. I just want diagrams," Ota's voice muttered in her ear. It sounded like he was talking into his wineglass. "But, heads up: I don't know what's going on but a bunch of security just left the ballroom."

Cat paled and glanced to the remaining two towers she needed to dismantle. Baba kissed her forehead and stood. "Don't worry. I'll take care of the guards. You just finish here and meet me on the balcony."

Cat's brain short-circuited trying to process that. "There's no time, we aren't supposed to trip any alarms and--Baba, we're on the thirty-second floor!"

"Trust me, pretty lady." He winked and disappeared out the door.

Cat didn't have the time to doubt. She cursed under her breath and sped through the next two cases faster than she'd thought possible. If guards were on the way up,  now she had to do extra work of replacing the covers so nothing looked out of place. She'd barely popped the last cover back in place when she heard footsteps outside. Baba hadn't been able to divert them. She grabbed the bag of hard drives and dove for the sliding doors to the balcony. She barely slid them closed when light flooded the room behind her.

Wind bit at her hair as Cat pressed herself to be as small as possible against the brick building. The thirty-second really was too high for a proper enjoyable balcony. She could hear the muted thuds of men in the room behind her. She didn't think she'd left anything else noticeably out of place, but she had no way of being certain without revealing herself. If security caught her out there, there'd be no way of avoiding charges. More importantly, no way of keeping them from taking the hard drives. She slid the strap of the bag over her head and tried to calm the trapped feeling in her chest.

Her heart nearly stopped when a shadow fell over her face. A soft-soled shoe tapped down on the railing in front of her eyes. Cat shot her eyes up.

"Miss me, princess?" Baba's smile was glittering, even against the silhouette of the moon. One hand held securely to the clamp holding him to the guide wire running from above. A heavy coil of rope hung from his hip.

Cat let out a breath. She didn't ask where the rope came from this time. An airy grin floated onto her face. "It's thirty-two stories."

"Says the girl who nearly jumped from the penthouse." Baba's smile softened into something undefinable. He held out his hand. "Trust me?"

A weightless feeling rose in her chest. "I do."

A shout barked from the hotel room, probably because while a full moon made for an incredibly dramatic entrance, it also made it easy to spot a thief on a railing.

Cat grabbed Baba's hand and wrapped her arms tight around his neck as she left the safety of the balcony. She kissed his cheek as they left the balcony and swept through open air. Falling, flying, freeing.

He stole her away.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Auction Protocol has a PLAYLIST: <https://open.spotify.com/user/ninjakins/playlist/3Err8kmlfm7egZUne9Y61T> The song order vaguely follows the plot.
> 
> ...I really don't know what to write here. This is it, the end of Auction Protocol and the adventures of the Auction bidders and their pet hacker. Thank you so much for reading. 
> 
> This fic has been a TRIP. It's funny to go back and read the early chapters and see how far we've come (and resist the urge to go back and edit). I started writing Auction Protocol when I was stuck and frustrated with my novel manuscript and now, over a year later, I am finishing it so I can make more time to write my (up-coming!) romance book to be published. And you know what, I really don't think I'd be doing that if I hadn't started playing otome games and decided to write this fanfic. I wouldn't be doing it if I hadn't had your support, comments, kudos to keep me at it. So. Wow, guys. Thank you. <3 
> 
> Special thanks to Codango, who is my fic sensei, and thank you to itive2, Holieshka, emmey_canary, Huntress_88, ricebunny on here. where-madness-reigns, wickedtiff, ladystar0710 on tumblr. And everyone else who read and didn't give up on me when my fandom-fuel ran out late in the game and updates got so sporadic. You guys are the best.
> 
> I'm [otomesnark](http://otomesnark.tumblr.com/) on tumblr, say hi. <3


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